One and the Same
by Anthony1
Summary: AU. Naruto just wanted to become a shinobi like the rest of his friends. Training and doing missions didn't seem like too much to ask. However, something happens that changes all that. Only time will tell if he can handle it.
1. Surprise

Well, I'm back with a new story but there's a difference. This is my first story that's Naruto. Originally this was going to be a digimon story but I changed my mind since I felt that it would be a bit more suitable for the Naruto section. Also, I have only done stories that are digimon and I felt it was time to try something different.

This story is a bit of an alternative timeline to the series but it shouldn't be nothing that major to mess up the story that much. You'll better understand what I mean as you read. I hope that you enjoy the first chapter and as for the disclaimer, I don't Naruto or any of it's characters.

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One and the Same

Chapter 1:  
Surprise

A Century Ago…

There is a story about when a village was being invaded by a great evil. It was in the form of a giant demon fox with nine tails and a tremendous degree of intent for killing that could be felt from miles away. The people of the village did everything that it could protect their home but it was all for not as many of them fell against the fox's horrendous power.

With the hope of the people fading and village near ruin it seemed as though nothing would stop the nine-tailed fox. That all changed though when the strongest person was able to defeat the fox and save his village from devastation. Not longer after the man who became their savior disappeared and was never seen again.

Surprisingly, shortly after that dark incident something strange occurred. Most of the survivors of those who were there during the defeat of the nine-tailed fox had acquired unusual abilities. Those abilities that would be known as bloodline limits, were diverse from each other and they would continue to go on through the families' future generations. The reason as to how these abilities came to be is unknown and continues to be a mystery to this very day.

-/-/-/-/-

Present Day…

He was running. That was what the boy, who looked as though he was in his mid teens, was doing as he ran through what appeared to large forest that had a blanket of fog covering it. Despite running as fast as his legs would take him he could still hear the sounds of the things that were casing him. Even though he was on the verge of exhaustion the boy continued on as he didn't want to meet up with what was chasing after him.

He continued to run until his foot got hook on a root of a tree that caused him to crash to the floor. Trying to regain the breath that was knocked out of him from the fall he looked over his shoulder and spotted what he was running from. The boy inched himself away in a attempt to get away but no matter how much he tried he couldn't create enough distance between him and his pursuer.

Standing face to face with the boy was a bulky green skinned creature with razor sharp claws and teeth. But what struck him more were its eyes. Those blood red eyes that seem to stare straight into him, to his very soul. Even at that moment it appeared as though he was prepared to deal with the boy, and I mean permanently.

"Why are you chasing after me? I haven't done anything to you." Despite the fear that the boy was experiencing he tried to keep a brave front but it was obvious that it was nothing more than a façade.

"You know perfectly well why this is happening." spoke the creature in a somewhat gurgling voice. "Besides, I'm just following orders and those orders are to eliminate you."

Raising his arms to the air the creature was readied to deliver fatal blow with a swipe of his claws. "I don't know what's so special about you but I'm not about to start to go against my orders. So, say goodbye kid." Everything suddenly became black as the creature brought his claws down onto the boy.

-/-/-/-/-

"Nnnnnoooooo!" The screaming continued until two grown ups came running in.

"Naruto, wake up. Come on kid, snap out of it." Coming to his scenes the boy now identified as Naruto breathed heavily as he stopped his screaming as he realize that he was not in any forest. In all actuality he was in his room. "You were having a nightmare son. Are you all right?" questioned a white haired old man who appeared to be in his fifties.

Regaining his composure Naruto looked towards her with an expressionless look. Not wanting to worry the man about what he just went through, Naruto decided to keep it to himself. "I'm fine Jiraiya. It was just a bad dream, that's all." Even though he appeared to be all right it was obvious to the man known as Jiraiya was that he was simply trying keep him from worrying. Not wanting to push the subject, he left the room so they could allow Naruto the chance to get ready for school.

Almost a half an hour Naruto finally emerged from his room wearing a black shirt with an orange unbutton shirt over it and blue jeans. Sitting down at the table he quietly ate his breakfast with Jiraiya watching on. "Are you sure you want to go to school today Naruto?" asked the white haired man. "I mean, we can call the office and tell them that you're not feeling that well."

Without responding, Naruto got up and after putting his plate into the sink grabbed his book bag. "Don't bother uncle. I think it would be better if I go to school. It'll allow me to have something that'd keep my mind off of…other things."

With that he left his uncle alone. "The time has come for us to tell him the truth." Jiraiya muttered to himself. "It's time that he knew the truth about himself."

-/-/-/-/-

Taking his time, Naruto headed towards his school. As he was walking the images of the nightmare resurface. In an attempt to shake those thoughts away he began to think about anything else that would distract him.

It had been close to seventeen years since his parents had passed away. With no other living relatives he went to live with his late father's former teacher, Jiraiya. While he was younger it wasn't all that bad but now that he was older he couldn't help but notice that his 'uncle' had some distasteful tendencies. The main one being that he was a big pervert and he came to discover that when he discovered that his uncle was the man who had been writing the perverted book series entitled, Icha Icha. After that discovery the two of them came to an agreement. The agreement being that Jiraiya could continue with the writing of his series as long as he didn't get Naruto involved with it.

He was now in his junior year of high school which was somewhat of a miracle since his grades weren't all that impressive as they were just good enough to allow him to pass. Hopefully things would change as Naruto felt as though that this year would be different. Luckily it appeared as though Naruto's thinking distracted him so much that he didn't realize that he had walked passed the school and would've continued if someone called out to him from the school's front entrance.

"Hey, Naruto. Where are you going?" Finally snapping out his thoughts, Naruto turned around and saw that the person who called out to him was a brown hair kid that was tied into a bushy ponytail. What he had on was a basic green t-shirt and light black shorts. He wasn't the only one there as standing beside the boy was horizontally bigger than they were. The outfit that he had on was a yellow shirt with a green unbutton shirt over it and tan colored shorts that went down to his knees.

When Naruto got closer, his friend became concern when he saw look on his face. "Are you all right? You look a little pale."

"I'm fine Shikamaru. I just didn't get that much sleep." Naruto quickly established. He didn't want to worry his friends for something that could practically be nothing. _"It would only be more bad than good if I told them about the dream."_

That seemed to be a good enough Shikamaru as he let the topic drop. With that out of the way he looked over to the third member of their group who was munching on a bag of potato chips. "Choji, don't you think that it's a little early to start with that? School hasn't even started."

In response, Choji merely grunted as he finished up the bag. "Oh, come on. It's just something to tie me over until lunchtime. Besides, it was a small bag, not my usual super size ones." Not bothering to start an argument that would what Shikamaru usually consider as 'troublesome' both of them dropped it.

The three of them would continue to talk until Naruto managed to catch a glimpse of someone hiding behind one of the gateposts. Already having a good idea on who that somebody was he quietly went over to the person. When he got close enough Naruto was able to confirm his suspicion. Still unaware of his presence was a girl with blue hair that went down to her shoulders and lavender colored eyes that surprisingly had no pupils. She was wearing a baggy light purple hooded sweatshirt that was over a light gray shirt and bluish purple pants. "Hey there Hinata. What are you doing here?"

Realizing that she was discovered, the girl identified as Hinata backed away. "Oh, uh, N-N-Naruto. T-There was n-n-no reason." she timidly responded as she had her head bowed forward and poking her index fingers together. "I just didn't want to…bother you."

"Is that all?" Reaching over, Naruto place his hands on her shoulders. "We've talked about this before. You've never been a bother to me and you never will. So you don't have to hesitate in joining us."

Naruto's words had an instant reaction as Hinata snapped her head up and looked at him in shock. Along with it a light blush came over her cheeks that weren't notice by her blonde haired friend. "Thank you, Naruto." Hinata quietly thanked. In response her friend gave her a big smile while rubbing the back of his head. The moment between the two would be broken when the sound of two people bickering could be heard. There identities would be discovered as two girls came towards the school.

One of them had pink hair that reached pass her shoulder blades and green eyes. She had on a light red shirt underneath a darker colored vest that was halfway zipped up and semi tight black shorts that went just pass her knees. The other was a blonde that had her hair tied in a ponytail as well as some of the hair going over the right side of her face and one of her blue green eyes. Her outfit comprised of a purple blouse that partially exposed her stomach and a matching skirt that went to mid thigh which had a slit on the sides. The two rushed pass everyone and didn't stop until they came across the school entrance.

"Ha, I beat you, forehead." boasted the blonde.

"Not a chance, pig." retorted the pink haired girl. "I had you beat by an entire foot." The exchange between the two would become even more heated as they literally were butting heads and giving one another heated stares.

"There they go again." muttered Shikamaru who was one of the people who was witnessing the whole thing. "They do this almost every week. It's really becoming very troublesome." After saying that he immediately ducked behind Choji as both of the girls turned their sights onto him.

Seeing the trouble that his friend was in, Naruto came to his rescue. "Hey, isn't that Sasuke coming this way?" The response was instant as the anger that the girls exhibited vanish as they turned to where Naruto had pointed, only to see no one. "Ha, I knew that would've work. You two are so predictable."

Whatever joking that Naruto planned on doing was stopped when the girls' anger returned and then some as it was directed towards him. Unable to prevent what was to come, Naruto moved away from Hinata just as he was on the receiving end of a beating from the enrage females. The beating continued until someone decided to put an end to it.

"Shadow Possession." Instantly a shadow stretch out and once it made contact with the shadows of the girls their beating came to an abrupt end. "I think that the two of you have done enough." establish the one who stopped the beating.

"Damn you, Shikamaru." informed the blonde girl who like her female companion couldn't move at all due to the shadow technique. "I hate it when you do this."

Unaffected by those words, Shikamaru maintained his hold. "You didn't leave me with much of a choice Ino. I mean, you and Sakura were beating my friend to a pulp." By his tone it was clear that he wasn't pleased by what they did.

"Don't take it personal Shikamaru." advised Naruto as he sat there on the ground. Even with the scraps and bruises that he had sustained from the two girls he didn't seem the lease bit affected. "I somewhat deserved it after that little joke that I played on them. Besides, it's not like they did any permanent damage." To prove his point, all of the injuries that he had started to heal themselves right before everyone's' eyes. "After all, what's the point of having quick healing if you can't use it at moments such as this?"

Seeing the somewhat logic in his friend's words, Shikamaru released his shadow hold on the girls. "Sometimes Naruto you're too forgiving."

Naruto merely shrugged his shoulders. "I just don't see the point in holding a grudge from something so pointless." Getting up he wiped away the dust from his clothes and thanks to a handkerchief that Hinata gave him any of the stray blood. "It shouldn't come as much as a surprise. Seeing as I somewhat offended the self-proclaimed amazing Sasuke Uchiha." Once again the two girls' anger was directed towards him but to a lesser extent.

"Take that back." demanded Sakura. "Sasuke's the best there is. He's the top rated student in our grade since he does excellent in every test and no can't beat him. You have no right to say anything bad about him."

"I don't see why I have to." replied Naruto. "Given the opportunity I think I could give him a run for his money."

"So saids someone who has the lowest standings in our entire grade." commented Ino. "You're really in no position to say anything."

"That doesn't really prove anything. From what I know Hinata is usually upper half of the tests and Sakura, more times that not you do better on the exams than anyone else in the class." Unable to help themselves, both girls couldn't help but lightly blush from the praise. "Also, look at Shikamaru. He's barely above me in the class standings but if he was to put effort during the tests he would probably be at the top." In his defense, Shikamaru simply grunted that neither denied nor support his friend's statement.

Before the back and forth of words could go any further, the attention of both Ino and Sakura was adverted by the appearance of a person that was connected with their conversation. Walking to the school was a boy their age with black eyes and hair that was spiky in the back. He was wearing a blue shirt that had a small red and white fan symbol on both sleeves and tan colored shorts that went to his knees.

You could practically feel the smugness that he was giving off as he entered the school grounds without giving any of them a second glance. As he walked off he wasn't exactly going alone as both Ino and Sakura were not that far behind.

"You've got to somewhat envy that Uchiha presence." said Choji. He along with his friends watched as the Uchiha was getting even more attention from the other students, especially from the females. "Without saying a word they can become the center of attention."

"But that doesn't mean that there aren't any less stuck up." added Naruto. "As I know the whole Uchiha family has acted as though they're the best thing around. They're just as bad as the Hyugas." Right after those words left his mouth he immediately regretted saying them. "Oh, I'm sorry Hinata. I wasn't thinking."

"It's okay Naruto. You don't need to apologize." Hinata reassured in the same timid way as before. "My family is old fashion. So no offense was taken."

"Still, I had no right to say such a thing. Just because there are issues between me and my family it doesn't mean I should bad mouth them. I mean, they can't be all that bad if they have someone like in it." Once again Naruto's words had an affect on Hinata as the blush returned to her face and like before he failed to recognize it.

Soon the bell rung that signaled that classes were about to begin. The four of them went to their individual first period classes after reuniting at lunch. With great reluctance Naruto headed for class which he wasn't looking forward in attending for various reasons. One being that it wasn't a class that he didn't really care for and that led to the other reason. Due to the class usually losing his interest he would let his mind and unfortunately Naruto had a feeling that if that were to happen today he would think back to the reoccurring dream that he has been having. _"Perhaps I'm being too hasty. Maybe class won't be that boring."_

-/-/-/-/-

"_Then again, I could be wrong."_ To Naruto's dismay his worries prove to be accurate as it was only ten minutes into the class and he was already bored senseless. For a moment he thought about striking up a conversation with one of the other classmates but thought better of it when he remembered who the students that were closest to him were.

On his left was Shino Aburame who hardly said more than a sentence or two to anyone. Most of his body was concealed as he wore baggy tan jacket with a hood over his head that was over a white shirt and black pants. You couldn't even see his eyes as he constantly wearing sunglasses.

Naruto had nothing against Shino as he considered him an okay guy in his own way. It was just that it sometimes took great effort to get him to say anything. Another thing that made it difficult for anyone to get close to him was his family's unique bloodline ability. That ability being the entire Aburame family being able to communicate with insects and have them do whatever they wanted. _"Sometimes it seems as though he would rather talk with bugs than people."_

With that opportunity being nonexistent, Naruto looked to the person on his right but quickly grimace. The person was Kiba Inuzuka, who had to be the most brash and cockiest guys around right after Sasuke. He was wearing a red shirt, black jeans and a long gray trench coat that had a big red paw print on the back.

You could practically see Kiba's wild personality as his brown hair while short stuck out in all directions. It was as though he was somewhat representing his and his entire family had with dogs. Much like with the Aburame family, the Inuzukas were able to communicate with dogs and vice versa When you see one the other was close by and Naruto's suspicions were correct because inside of Kiba's duffel bag was a small white dog named Akamaru. Like with Shinio there wasn't really any issues between him and Naruto with the exception was a bit too overconfident that it was similar to Sasuke but to a lesser extent.

"_With these choices for conversation I think I would rather be alone with my thoughts."_ However while that sounded good it wasn't because soon his thoughts drifted to the dream that he had earlier. _"No matter how hard I try to shake it off I can't get that dream out of my head."_ Naruto thought to himself. _"What's worse is that I'm not sure that it was a dream but actually some kind of warning."_

Suddenly, what sounded like an explosion was heard. Whatever the cause was it had to be a strong one as the entire building shook. It wouldn't be the only one as there was additional explosions occurred. The teacher tried to keep everyone calm but it was proving unsuccessful as the students started running about. There were some exceptions as Shino remained stoic as ever and the other being Naruto who was getting an uneasy feeling about what was going on.

Without thinking he hurried out of the classroom and only stop when someone called out to him. "Where do you think you're going Uzumaki?" At the doorway of the classroom was Kiba and standing behind him was Shino.

"I'm going to go find my friends." he answered with his back still towards them. "I have to make sure that they're okay. Don't you even try to stop me or you'll regret it." Expecting to get a response of some sort, Naruto was surprise when both of them stood on either side of him.

"Well, what are you waiting for?" questioned Kiba. "You want to find your friends and it'll take you forever to do so then by yourself." In response, Akamaru barked and began to sniff around to find any familiar scents.

"What I think our simple minded friend is trying to say is that it'll be easier to complete the search with some assistance." established Shino in a calm voice. For his part, Kiba gave the bug user an intense glare which didn't affect Shino whatsoever.

While Naruto didn't have the best of friendship with either one of them he wasn't about to look a gift horse in the mouth. "If you're going to follow me then so be it. Just don't get in my way." Not even looking back, Naruto headed off but knowing that the two voluntaries were not far behind.

They continued to run for a few minutes until they arrived to where the hallway divided in three separate directions. _"Damn it! I forgot that my friends' classes are on different ends of the school."_ Looking back he was somewhat surprise to see that both Kiba and Shino were waiting for some instructions.

"We need to separate here. Shino, if you go down the left hallway it'll lead you to where Choji is. Use your bugs if you have to. Kiba, take the right and you should meet up with Shikamaru and if not then have Akamaru help you find him. I'll take the middle and go get Hinata. If they're still in the building get them to safety. Does that sound good?" His two comrades simply nodded their heads in confirmation. "Good. Then let's get going."

That was all that was needed to be said as all three went down their designated hallway. Unknowing on how Kiba and Shino were doing, Naruto realized that things were going to be harder than originally thought. Apparently his class wasn't the only one that was affected by the explosions as many of the other students were running frantically throughout the halls. Add that to the fallen debris that was the result of the explosions it made it difficult for him to maneuver about. It took some effort but Naruto finally reached his destination. However, while he try to prepare himself for whatever was to come he still found it hard to see what he saw.

Inside of the classroom that Hinata had usually at that time were three green skinned creatures that judging by their appearance they were extremely strong. On closer examination Naruto could see that amongst the creatures were some students and there were two particular people that his sights focus on as it was none other than Hinata Hyuga and Sakura Haruno.

Not wanting to allow whatever those creatures were the chance to hurt anyone, Naruto looked for something that he could fight with. He found it when he spotted a fire extinguisher hanging on the wall. Grabbing it, he ran straight towards one of the creatures and when he was close enough Naruto literally tossed it at the nearest creature, which collided on the back of its head. Hoping that shot would cause at least some sort of damage, Naruto became disappointed as it appeared as though it didn't even faze the creature.

Turning around they set their sight on Naruto. Seeing that his plan didn't work, he decided to go with the next one that came to him. "That's right. I threw it. What are you going to do about it?" Reaching down he picked up someone's dropped binder and with the best as he could threw it at one of the creatures and much like what happened with the fire extinguisher, it didn't do any type of damage.

"Come on, you want me, come and get me. That's if of course you guys are too scared to come after one tiny human." Those remarks cause all the creatures to become furious as they went after him.

"Run Daisuke." screamed Hinata. The girl was worried about his friend. "Forget about us and save yourself."

"Listen to her you idiot." added Sakura. While she loved to he saved from whatever the things that was holding them hostage he didn't want anyone to die because of it.

"That's not going to happen." Naruto quickly argued. "Get everyone to safety while I deal with these oversize blockheads." That was the last thing that he said as he ran around the corner with the creatures following close behind.

Running as fast as his legs would allow him; Naruto ran out of the school and even was able to stay ahead of his opposition for over a block. Unfortunately for him, he took the wrong turn as he ran into a one way alley. Realizing his mistake, the blonde attempted to turn around but before he had the chance the creatures had blocked his only exit. Knowing that the likelihood of running through them to escape was unlikely, he grabbed a rebar that was lying nearby and held it up, ready to use it if necessary.

"Well come on. You have me back into a corner. So why don't you get over here and finish it?" For a moment the creatures were taken by surprise by the lack of fear that he was demonstrating. That feeling would soon pass as one of them came towards him. With all the strength that he could muster, Naruto swung the rebar at the creature only for it to break when it made contact with the creature's body. _"Oh, crap."_ Naruto didn't have the opportunity to get over the failed attempt as he was grabbed by the throat and was lifted off of his feet.

"Pathetic human." remarked the creature that had the blonde in his grasp. "You're a stupid human in trying to defy us." To show his annoyance, Naruto's captor tossed him through the air and into the brick wall. When Naruto hit the ground his eyes were still open but it was obvious that no one was home. "It serves you right. You're on the verge of death so it would be pointless of personally removing you from the land of the living."

Turning around they started to leave their resent prey, not realizing that something was happening. Within the body of the battered body of Naruto, deep thumping sound was coming from inside him. The sound slowly started to come out quicker, to the point that it actually cause his body to convulse slightly. Suddenly a bright light surrounded him. This caught the attention the creatures as the turned around to see what was going on.

All of a sudden, the bright light seemingly exploded outward, which blinded everyone close by. Gradually the light began to diminish but still no one could see what was going on at the focal point of it all. Nothing was happening as those who were viewing on the outside were waiting for whatever was going to happen next. They got their answer when a blur went flying out of the light and in a blink of an eye punched right through the closes creature. The result of the maneuver was instant as the creature fell to the ground dead.

While the remaining creatures were trying to recover from the sudden death of their comrade, they got a look at the person who caused the death. He had long fiery orange hair that reached the middle of his back and red eyes with the pupils were silted. His body was muscular but not over the top, each of his fingers had clawed like nails and another thing that stuck out from the already peculiar individual was that on the upper part of his mouth there were two teeth that resembled fangs.

Finally recovering from their shock, the three remaining creatures charged forward in the attempt to settling of score against the person who killed their comrade. Showing absolutely no concern, the newcomer ducked the first creature and actually jumped over the second one, where he then used his claws to stab the third one in the neck, which caused his to die.

Removing his blood soaked hand from his latest victim he turned his attention to the two remaining opponents. Realizing that going one on one against him wouldn't work, they went after him at the same time. Despite being outnumbered, the newcomer didn't seem to mind as he went after them without abandon. Blocking a punch from the closes creature he swung him around and when he did that, the fist went into the face of the other creature, knocking him down.

Now having it one on one, the newcomer grabbed the creature by the back of the head and began to repeatedly smash it into the wall until a bone crushing crunch was heard. Once he was satisfied with the damage that was done he allowed the lifeless body to crumble to the ground. Turning his attention to the last remaining creature he saw that it was running away for his dear life. He was about to go after him until it looked as though the newcomer was coming out of some trance.

"Where am I?" asked the newcomer in a voice that belonged to none other than Naruto Uzumaki. Coming out of whatever type of daze that he was in he saw all of the destruction that was around him and the blood that stained his now claw like hands. "A better question is, what the hell have I done?"

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I bet that none of you expected that did you? You probably have already figured it out that Naruto doesn't act completely like he is in the actual series and there is a reason for it. Remember, in the series he practically grew up without many people caring about him while in this story he's been taken cared of by his guardian, Jiraiya and living a somewhat normal life. You're see more of the differences between his character as well as the other characters that'll be in this story. 

Speaking of the characters, I'm hoping to having all of them appearing in the story sometime in this story and not being just a background characters. Case in point, I want the character TenTen to have a more active role then she somewhat has in the series.

That's pretty much it and I'll do my best in having the next chapter on in the very near future and it you have any questions just leave them in your review and I'll try my best to answer them. Until then, see ya.


	2. Discovery

Here's the second chapter to my story. It sucks that I didn't get any reviews for the first chapter but that's something that I have to deal with. That of curse doesn't mean taht I'm planning on quieting this story because of it. Well, that's pretty much it and of course, I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Chapter 2:  
Discovery

"Ruthless carnage and devastation is the best why to describe the events that have occurred at the Konoha high school. Just earlier today an explosion that took place in this area, injuring numerous students, fortunately there has been no report of any fatalities as a result of the incident." Switching from the reporter, they went to video of the damage that happened to the school.

"As of right now, there hasn't been any information given to the public about those who could be responsible for this happening. Despite this, there has already numerous rumors circulating about that there were some unknown creatures that were responsible but there hasn't been any confirmation behind those rumors. This is Genma Shiranui, of Konoha Station News."

Turning off the television, Jiraiya let out a heavy sigh. _"There's no doubt about it now. It's obvious that the moment has arrived." _He thought, not even trying to think otherwise. _"It's the moment that I wasn't sure that it would ever come." _His train of thought came to an abrupt end when he heard a smashing sound from the apartment bathroom.

Carefully walking over Jiraiya opened the door and what he saw shocked him. Standing in front of the sink was Naruto, still in his new appearance scrubbing his hands vigorously. It took a bit for the older man to get over the shock before he was able to speak. "Naruto? Is that you?"

Either he didn't hear him or simply didn't bother to respond, Naruto continued to scrub his hands even though they were becoming raw. "What happen to you?" Cautiously Jiraiya placed his hand on the boy's shoulder and as soon as it made contact, Naruto back away as if the contact caused him pain.

"Stay back!" pleaded Naruto as if he was actually frightened about something. Going back to the sink he began to scrub his hands again but his guardian could hear him muttering something over and over again. "It won't come off. No matter how many times I scrub them they won't come off no matter how many times I try."

"What are you talking about? What won't come off?" Jiraiya asked as he started to become very worried about his charge.

"…The blood. I can't get rid of the blood of those…whatever those things that I…I killed." exclaimed Naruto as he continued to scrub the nonexistent blood from his hands.

"Does these 'things' that you're talking about, do they have something to do with what happened at the school?" It seemed as those words finally started to calm Naruto down as he gradually exited the bathroom and sat down in the living room.

"There were explosions during the first period of classes. The school became chaotic and everyone was running about scared. Fortunately I was able to keep my composure and with the help of some people I went to see the safety of my friends. I got to Hinata's class and I saw creatures that I never saw before were holding them hostage. So, being the bonehead that I am I had them chase after me so everyone could get away. Regrettably, I got corned and when I tried to fight my way out they beat me nearly to death. Then, just when it seemed as though I was on the verge of dieing a weird sensation overcame me and when I finally came to I was like this. For the past hour I have been unable to figure out what's happening to me."

As Naruto explained what happened, Jiraiya silently was thinking about something. "I think there's something that I need to tell you Naruto." By the tone of his guardian's voice, Naruto knew that whatever he was going to say, it was important. "It's about your parents and the heritage that comes along with your family line."

"What about my family?" Naruto asked as he couldn't completely comprehend what he was being told. "I thought that you told me that they died in an accident when I was a baby."

Realizing that the talk was going to be a long one, Jiraiya sat himself down in a near by chair. "I did tell you that but it wasn't exactly the truth. You're family did die when you were a baby but it wasn't an accident. They were murdered."

That shocked Naruto as he didn't predict such a thing to be said. _"They were murdered. How can that be?"_ Soon confusion was replaced by angered. _"Who could've done such a thing? Whoever it is will pay when I get my hands on them."_

Noticing how the blonde haired boy was reacting to the news, Jiraiya tried to squash them. "I know what you're thinking Naruto and don't. You're in no way able to go against the ones responsible for your parents' death. Deep down, I think that you already know this."

Reluctantly Naruto had to agree with what was being said. Even if he used the new form of his he most likely wouldn't be able to go against anyone who kill his parents. "Fine, I won't go after them. Though could you at least explain what the hell is going on with me?"

"To do that I would have to go back to when the nine-tailed fox attacked our village. But since you already know about that I'll skip that and tell you what _really_ happen that dreadful day." That caught the attention of Naruto as he wasn't able to figure out how what was happening to him was connected in anyway with the nine-tailed fox attack. "While it's worldly known that the fox spirit was destroyed that wasn't the truth. What actually happen was that someone actually contained the fox into a container, more precise a human container."

"_Why do I have a feeling that I don't want to hear the rest of the story?"_ thought Naruto but didn't outwardly said them. For a reason that he couldn't really explain he wanted, no, needed to hear the rest. "Do you know who it was that contained the fox and who the container was?"

"Actually they are one and the same." explained Jiraiya who was completely serious while he talked about the back story. "Not willing to sacrifice anyone by making them the container, the person chose themselves. While the person survived the sealing he now had the fox within him for the remainder of his life. To make sure that the nine tails wouldn't be able to cause anymore destruction he made it so that once he died the fox spirit would be transferred to someone in the next generation of his family. The name of the person was Haruto Uzumaki. He's your ancestor, Naruto."

While Naruto already had a feeling that he would hear such a thing it still didn't help to lessen the shock of it. "Then if what you say is true then was the last person who was the container my father?" He already knew the answer but still wanted to actually hear it from Jiraiya.

"Yes he was. Before you even ask, your mother, Kushina knew about but still loved him and I should know since I knew them since they were children. As for him having the ability to transform like you did I can't say that it ever happen." commented Jiraiya in complete honesty. "However, your father did say on occasion that apparently that with each new container the blending between them and the nine tails seemingly became more merged. Perhaps that's how you got your quick healing bloodline. It was said that the fox had surprisingly quick healing. That's probably the reason why this transformation has happen to you."

"Who cares about the reason." Naruto retorted as he was finally showing the signs of what was being said becoming too much for him to take. "I just want to know if this is permanent change or if there's a way to return to how I once was."

For a while there was only silence as neither one knew what to say. It would be Jiraiya who would give some advice. "Maybe what happen to you is somehow tied with your emotions. You said that you…changed when you were close to death. Since then you've been high strung since then. Perhaps if you just calm down and focus then you may change back."

Having no other idea about what to do, Naruto did as suggested. Closing his eyes he took a couple deep breaths and it seemed as though it was working as he started to feel something different about him. He continued to do this for a few more minutes until he finally opened his eyes and discovered that he was back to his original self. "It worked. I'm me again and I couldn't be any...what's that?" What Naruto was talking about was some kind of news report that was on the TV. Becoming interested as well, Jiraiya turned up the volume to hear what the news report was.

"We interrupt our regular scheduled programming to bring you this late breaking news. Monsters are reported to be attacking high rank district of Konoha." That immediately gained the complete attention of the two as the news report showed images of creatures attacking numerous buildings and terrorizing people. However, what really caught Naruto's attention was that the creatures were the same ones that he had dealt with earlier.

"Not much is known about these strange creatures but it has been reported by numerous sources that stated that they resembled the ones that were said to be responsible for the destruction at the Konoha High Schoo. Fortunately there are no reports of any casualties but that it is believed that it'll be only a matter of time until that will change."

"Aren't those the same things that you fought earlier Naruto?" When there was no answer, Jiraiya turned around and that there was no sign of the blonde. However, she did see that the front door was left wide open.

-/-/-/-/-

"_Damn it, I thought I wouldn't be dealing with those things again."_ thought Naruto to himself as he ran out of the apartment complex. He couldn't help but feel that what was happening was in a way his fault. Even though he was technically in control of himself when he first transformed he still recalled that one of the creatures that he dealt with had managed to escape and now it seemed as though he'll have the chance to correct that mistake.

Making sure that no one was watching he ducked into a nearby alley. He knew that he had no chance of taking them on as he was, he decided to do what Jiraiya had told him. Closing his eyes he focused on the transformation. This prove to be much easier than he thought as apparently it got easier since he done it once before.

When it felt like it was done he opened his eyes and saw that he had indeed transofmed. Not wanting to waste another moment he sped off. As Naruto ran he realized that he was running faster then he ever had before. Seeing a possible way to get to where he needed to get to faster he started to leap forward which helped him to get farther than by running. _"I sure hope that I get there soon. I couldn't live with myself if someone got hurt or even die when there was something that I could've done to prevent it."_

-/-/-/-/-

"Do what you wish. Destroy and cause havoc to all those around." proclaimed one of the creatures. Doing as instructed the five other creatures ran rampant, causing damage to every building that they came across and terrorizing the people that were trying to run away. Amongst those people was some of the noble Hyuga family.

"Stop what you are doing this instant." ordered a man who had long black hair that went down to his shoulder blades and eyes that identified him as a Hyuga. "By the name of Hiashi Hyuga I'm demanding that you put an end to this immediately."

For a moment the creatures actually stopped what they were doing and looking at Hiashi in surprise. That soon changed when they started to laugh. "Now, why would we do such a thing?" inquired the creature that was apparently the leader of all of them. "Don't get us wrong. We know that you're the leader of the famed Hyuga family but it doesn't matter if since there isn't anything that you can do to stop us. As a matter of fact…" In surprising move the creature reached over and grabbed a hold of Hinata who was standing beside her father. "You can't stop us from taking your daughter."

Immediately the veins around Hiashi's eyes flared up, signaling that the Byakugan, the Hyuga bloodline was triggered. "Release my daughter this second." When his demand wasn't done he charged forward to do so himself. Hiashi tried to end it quick but it was for not as he was knocked aside when he was hit from another creature. Due to the Byakugan that would nearly impossible but since he was so focus on freeing his daughter that he didn't take notice of anything else but what was in front of him.

"That's enough of these tiresome interruptions. It's time to get rid of at least one annoyance before we put this to a rest." That was when the creature turned his sight on Hinata who despite her best couldn't escape from her captor's grasp. Raising one of his clawed hands in the air the creature prepared to deliver the fatal blow. Knowing that there was nothing that she could do to prevent it, Hinata closed her eyes and waited for the end to come. However, it didn't come. Opening her eyes, Hinata saw that the blow that was meant for her was halted by someone, someone with fiery orange hair.

"Now, now, that's no way to treat a lady." With a grunt the unexpected savior delivered a blow to the creature's stomach that was strong enough that it caused him to involuntarily let go of Hinata. Before she fell to the ground she was caught by her rescuer. "Maybe I should give you a lesson on how to treat someone."

Feeling humiliated from what happen and recognizing who was responsible, the creature leader ordered his subordinates to take out the sudden newcomer. Two of them immediately went after him but they didn't even have a chance to do anything as unexpected hero leapt over them and as he went over them he stepped on the heads of the two creatures. When he landed he luckily landed beside the Hyuga family. "Here you go. Take care of her." He was of course referring to Hinata who appeared to have suffered any serious injury. "Take her and get out of here." Not even waiting for a reply the fiery orange haired young man turned back to what laid before him.

The two opposing him didn't even stand a chance against him as before they could even do anything their chests were punctured by the newcomer's claws. Now willing to stand by to see two of their comrades being killed, the other three creatures went after him. Though outnumbered three to one, the newcomer didn't seem the least bit worried, that would soon change though when he realize that he wasn't the one that they were going after. Their target was the Hyuga family who were still in the vicinity

"_Damn it. Those idiots didn't listen."_ Acting purely on instinct he sped up so that he was now in between the creatures and the Hyugas. The move came at such a surprise that the creatures could do nothing but continue with their charge. That would prove bad for them as when they were in arm's reach the rescuer drove both fists into their guts with enough force that they actually penetrated their bodies. Continuing with the move he pushed the now lifeless bodies away. Glancing over his shoulder he looked over to the somewhat shocked pearl eyed family. "This would be the time that I would tell you to leave but it would be redundant."

Like before the hero reentered the battle that comprised of him and three remaining creatures. "How about we complete our unfinished business?"

"Well, our business will stay unfinished." Stepping from behind the three creature subordinates was apparently the one who was responsible for all that had transpired today. "Since in a few minutes, you'll no longer be in the land of the living."

"Let me guess. You're the one that got away when I was dealing with your other friends."

"That's correct. You may have caught us by surprise but remember this. I know who you really are and if you don't watch it word might slip about what you are."

Not appreciating at being threaten, the newcomer took a step forward. "Now you listen. I don't like being intimidated, no matter who it is. Also, I can tell that you're not human. Also, if you think by threatening to tell everyone who I am is going to keep me from taking care of you, then you'd be mistaken."

Knowing that what his adversary was saying was true, the leader stepped back behind his minions. "If that's what you think, then so be it. Won't matter anyways since you won't be alive long enough to matter. Kill him and don't stop until you make sure that he's dead." Following their orders, all though being somewhat reluctantly, the other creatures charged at forward.

"_Please, when will they learn that they don't stand a chance against me?"_ thought the newcomer as he waited for his opposition to come to him. _"Oh well, I might as well deal with them before they become more of a nuisance."_ Stretching his fingers as far as possible so that his claws were sticking out like miniature dangers, the newcomer maneuvered with great speed out of harm's way only to reappear behind them. Following up with the momentum he drove his extended claws into the sides of the creatures' head. With them out of the way all that left was the leader.

Realizing that there was nothing left standing between him and the unexpected hero, the leader of the invading creatures tried to get away. "Now, now, listen. Maybe we got off on the wrong foot. Perhaps we could forget what happen between us and go our separate ways." For every back step that the creature took, the newcomer matched with one of his own.

"Forget about it you say? So, you want me to forget that you blew up the school, injuring numerous innocent people, tried to kill me and now attacking people who having nothing to do wit whatever you're trying to accomplish? Yeah, it sounds like a good plan." Wanting to finish this whole thing, the newcomer started to walk faster to his adversary hoping to end the whole event now.

But before he was to do so, a whirrling hole opened in the middle of the street. It was impossible to see what was inside since it was filled in a blinding light. Slowly something came walking out of the hole though you couldn't see who it was since the person was covered completely in a gray colored cloak. Whoever the person was the last remaining creature apparently knew who it was as he went over to them.

"Sir, I'm so glad that you're here. That is the menace that I told you about. He's the one who has slaughtered some of your men." Falling to his knees, the creature immediately groveled at the feet of the cloaked man.

"As I recall they were the same troops that you were in charge of." established the mystery figure with a dark and yet calm voice.

"W-Why yes I was s-sir. But he literally came out of nowhere so I was unable to come up with an affective strategy to deal with him before it was too late." You could practically feel the worry that was in the creature's voice. "Please sir, forgive me. I'm profoundly sorry for my failures."

It seemed as though the mysterious person was actually forgiving the creature. Unfortuantely, as the creature had turned his attention back towards the newcomer, as if to gloat, the cloaked individual punched his fist into the creature's back. The blow had so much force behind it that it actually came out from the chest. "B-But sir, wh-why did y-you?"

"You're proven to be a major disappoint to our lord. You should be fortunate that I allowed you to be alive this long." Reaching into his cloak the mystery person pulled out a kunai. Showing absolutely no sign of remorse he cut his former ally's head off.

With the life completely gone, the creature's body crumpled to the ground falling just inches away from its decapitated head. Shortly after, both the head and body began into dissolve to a powder residue. And throughout that whole thing, the long haired newcomer looked on in disbelieve. "Why did you do that? I mean, I could give a shit about him but he was one of your own men."

"So what if he was? He was a weakling and got what was coming to him. He's end was merciful compared to what I could've done to him." Turning around the cloaked man walked back into the opening but before going through, he looked over his shoulder to his enemy. "Don't think this is the end. You haven't seen the last of me and our group. And know that sooner or later one of us we'll take you out." With that out of the way, he walked into the opening and when he entered the opening disappeared as if there wasn't anything there to begin with.

"_Man, just when I thought that I wouldn't have to deal with something like this again."_ thought the unexpected hero as he calmed himself. He was about to head off but calmed out to him.

"Wait." Stopping in his tracks, he turned to the source, even though he already knew who it belonged to. His suspicion would be proven correct when he caught sight of Hinata who despite whatever injury that she may have sustained pulled herself to a sitting position. "Who are you?" Seeing that most of the people of the neighborhood were coming back and the sound of police sirens were not too far off the newcomer decided to make this quick.

"I'm afraid that cannot answer your question. Now, if you excuse me, I must take my leave." Not wanting to risk being spotted by anymore people he headed off by running off that was almost appeared to be a blur to all those who only moments ago were saved by some unknown hero and someone that they may never fully understand.

-/-/-/-/-

In an alley a few blocks away from the scene was the new hero. Making sure that the coast was clear he closed his eyes and with a deep breath his appearance changed to that of Naruto Uzumaki. _"Man, what a rush that was. Unfortunately, it looks as though it's only the tip of the iceberg of what's to come."_ A brief recalling of what that cloaked person said before disappearing. _"Hopefully I'll be prepared for whatever is to come."_

* * *

I hope that this chapter helped to explain more to what is going on and what happened in the previous chapter. As for that person that was hidden underneath the cloak, he'll be revealed later on but not in the near future. Before I end this, there's has been something that have been difficult for me to decide. That being what the couples should be. 

Right now, I'm leaning towards Naruto and Hinata getting together but I'm still not sure of the secondary couples should be. That's why I wouldn't mind having you readers giving me your suggestions about what those couples should be. If you do give me a reasonable reason why it should happen.

The next chapter I hope to have on sometimes in October. So, until next time, see ya.


	3. Adjusting

Well, another chapter is being updated on By the title of the chapter you can probably get an idea what it may be about but trust me, this chapter is a good read. Anyways, go ahead and check it out and for the disclaimer, I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Chapter 3:  
Adjusting

"_Where is he? He should've been back by now."_ Inside of the apartment that he shared, Jiraiya was doing the same thing that he had been doing since Naruto ran off and that was pacing back and forth while at the same time not trying to worry about his safety. "If he ended up dying I'll kill him."

"Man, old man, you must not have that much confidence in me, do you?" Turning toward the doorway Jiraiya saw was his young charge who was leaning casually against the hallway wall. "Come on, you know me better than that." Almost in a blink of an eye, his mother went over to him and looked over him from top to bottom. Not liking the close examination that he was getting, Naruto backed away. "Mom, I'm fine. They didn't come close in touching me." Walking into the living room, Naruto sat down in one of the recliners.

"Does that mean that you took care of the problem?" asked the white haired man who was taking the situation seriously.

"Yeah I did. For the most part at least." The next few minutes Naruto explained to his guardian about what had happen with the creatures, the sudden appearance of the cloaked man and the warning that he gave before disappearing. "And that's pretty much the whole story."

"So we should be expecting more of those things that have shown up?"

"Most certainly and so much more I'm afraid." confirmed Naruto with completely seriousness. "That may cause a problem since what happen today must've been seen on TV throughout Konoha."

"That's not exactly true." Jiraiya informed as he smirked. "All the reporters and cameras left the area shortly after you left. They said that it was too risky for them to stay. We can only hope that the ANBU weren't there as well or it'll only cause problems."

When he heard that, Naruto let a breath of relief. "At least that's some good news. Unfortunately we can't say the same for those who were still there when I arrived. Some of those people being the Hyuga family. Don't worry, they didn't recognize me." he quickly added when he saw the concern expression on Jiraiya's face.

Having nothing more to say, Naruto surprised his guardian by getting up and heading back to the door. "Where do you think you're going? You just got back."

"The night is still young and there are things that I need to take care of. Sorry to say, I've got to do something that I never want to do." Leaving the prevented author in confusion, Naruto opened the door and left.

-/-/-/-/-

Slowly Naruto made his way down a hallway of a place he never really much cared for and that place being the hospital. He never could understand the reason behind his fear but as long as he could remember the mere mentioning of a hospital would cause him to become slightly restless. Fortunately for him he never had to actually go into one due to his quick healing. Whether the fox spirit inside him had something to do with it as well was unknown.

Of course the reason for him being there was not about him but someone close to him. When he reached the room that he desired, Naruto briefly stood there as he didn't know whether to open the door or not. Finally gaining enough resolve he opened the door and went in. "Hey, how's it going?"

There in the only hospital bed was Hinata but she wasn't the only one in the room. All about the room was other members of the Hyuga family. Naruto recognize most of them as some of them were there when he had to deal with more of those creatures earlier in the day. There were however some that he hadn't seen in quite sometime. One of those people was a girl who couldn't be anymore older than eight years old who he knew was named Hanabi. It didn't take much to see that she was a Hyuga since she had the same type of eyes that was associated with the family. She even appeared to have the same narcissistic attitude as she shared the same unwanted stare that was directed towards him.

Unfazed by the looks that he was receiving, Naruto merely stared back at them. This continued to do this until the Hyugas decided to take their leave. It wasn't until they left did the blonde haired teenager drop the serious look and replaced it with a carefree expression. "Well, I could say that I'm sad to see them leave but I would be lying." He muttered as he sat down in chair that was close by.

"You really shouldn't say that Naruto." said Hinata as she sat in her hospital bed. "They're my family after all."

"While that may be true that doesn't give them the right to berate like they did." Naruto remark caught Hinata by surprise as she looked at him in confusion. "Come on Hinata. Did you actually think that I wouldn't notice that depress look that you had when I came in? For all the years that we've known each other I can recall you getting that depressed look whenever your father give you his 'words of wisdom'." Hinata didn't even try to deny it as she just bowed her head down to hide the sad look that was coming over her face.

"But enough of that though. Let's talk about something on a different subject." That seemed to suit Hinata fine as it help to get rid of the sad looked from her face, even though it was for the moment. "How are you feeling? I heard that you got hurt from something that happened earlier today."

"It's nothing to serious. Just some bruise ribs. I should be fine within a couple of weeks." That made her blonde haired friend happy as it was nothing serious. "How did you find out about me getting hurt? I don't remember everyone telling you about it."

"Uh, well, I…heard on the news about some kind of accident happening near your home and I managed to get the word from one of your branch family members that you got hurt. How you got hurt was the thing that they wouldn't tell me." Lying to his friend was something that Naruto prefer not to do but saw no other way to explain how he knew about what happened without telling her what had become of him. _"Someday I may tell you the truth Hinata but for now this is all that I can do."_

Thankfully for him, Hinata appeared to believe his excuse as she simply nodded her head in understanding. "The way that you found out doesn't matter. It's just nice that…y-you came." Slowly the nervousness that Hinata was accustomed of doing surfaced as she began to blush slightly. "So you know I was worried about y-you as well." That caught Naruto by surprise as she couldn't think of why she would say that. "Remember, you risk your life by having those creatures chase after you to save me. I was concerned that you would get hurt."

Touch by his friend's words, Naruto couldn't help but actual blush lightly. Shaking his head to get himself to focus he went ahead and reassured his friend. "You didn't need to worry about that. Have you forgotten that I've managed to escape from everyone that wanted to catch me?"

"As I recall the reason that they were trying to catch you is because you did one too many pranks." That comment came such a surprise that the two of them looked at one another in complete shock. Soon though the both of them started to chuckle and would then become a full blown laugh. From there Naruto and Hinata talked to each other about a variety of things. Just like friends such as themselves would.

-/-/-/-/-

After spending the remainder of the afternoon talking with Hinata, Naruto decided that it was time for him to head back home. All that he wanted to do is have time to have some time to really think about what has happen in this one day. He was close to the hospital exit but stopped when he caught sight of some individuals that he recognized. "Sakura? Ino? What are you guys doing here?"

Indeed the people at the reception desk were Ino Yamanaka and Sakura Haruno but there was something else that caught his attention. That being that Sakura's left leg from the knee down was wrapped up and that she was using the support of crutches to stand. "We could ask you the same thing Naruto?" retorted Ino who apparently was taking the role of speaking since Sakura was surprisingly being quiet. "Why would you be in the hospital? With your quick healing I never expected you to be here."

"I was here to see Hinata. She was here because she had some hurt ribs so I decided to come over to keep her company. Anyways, I asked you first. Did something happen to you two?"

"I'm fine. Like you I came here for a friend." It didn't take much to realize that Ino was referring to Sakura who continued to act strangely. "She injured her leg when the school was being attacked. Apparently she got roughed up by one of those creatures. She's lucky that she'll be fine within a month"

"Don't remind me about them. I barely got away from them when they came after me." Naruto's words weren't exactly the truth but it wasn't a lie either. "Well, I have to go you guys. I hope you'll be safe." He once again was heading for the exit but was stopped when someone grabbed a hold of his sleeve. Glancing over his shoulder he saw that the one who stopped him was Sakura.

"Thank you Naruto." muttered Sakura in a voice so low that it was barely heard. "Thanks for saving me from those…things that were at the school. I probably wouldn't be here if you didn't show up."

"Don't worry about it Sakura." Naruto casually responded. "I was just lucky to show up when I did. Anyway else would've done the same if they were in my shoes. Besides, I wouldn't be me if I stood back and did nothing." Stopping for a moment he turned to give Sakura one of his trademark smiles. "So, take it easy and get better."

With nothing more to say Naruto left with the two girls watching him as he went. "Man, talk about corny." commented Ino. "Do you actually believe he would say such things?" When she got no answer she looked over to her friend who had a strange expression on his face. "Hello, Sakura. Did you here what I said?" That seemed to get through to the pink haired girl as she snapped out whatever trace she was under. "What's with you?"

"N-Nothing." Sakura quickly answered. "I just spaced out for a moment there." To Sakura's relief Ino seemed to accept her excuse. "Let's get out of here. I don't want to be here any longer." Agreeing with her friend, both she and Ino left. As they left Ino couldn't help but wonder what was the deal with Sakura spacing out like she did.

-/-/-/-/-

"All right everyone. Gather around." Doing as instructed all of the students gathered around in a circle before their training was to begin. While it may appear to be some of school activity it was in fact something else. Long ago it was declared by that children of Konoha be involved in training sessions to better prepare themselves in case something bad were to happen. It was also the case of the children to use their abilities in a supervise environment.

The ones that were assigned to do be the instructing were two men and a woman that was well known within the village. One of the men had long gray hair that stood straight up He was wearing a dark blue shirt long sleeve shirt and green pants. However, what really identified him was that he wore a tight mask that was the same color as his shirt that covered his face from the nose down. Another thing noticeable thing about him was that he had a headband of the same color that was tilted slightly so that it covered his left eye. That person was Kakashi Hatake, he also went under the alias of Konoha's copycat.

How he came up with such a name is due to what he concealed behind his headband. Unlike his right eye that was like any other person's eye, his left eye was one that was usually belonged to an Uchiha. That meant that when in use that eye could copy some person's abilities and make it their own. Of course, that did not mean that he could copy the Byakugan that was associated with the Hyugas. All it meant was that if someone could do it and if a person using the Sharingan saw it then they would be able to use it themselves. How he, someone not even an Uchiha obtained the Sharingan was a mystery as very few knew the secret behind it.

As for the other man, he was wearing an outfit that was completely green. What he had on was a t-shirt that was underneath a muscle shirt that was the same color but only lighter and pants that was a darker color. He had black hair that was in a bowl cut and large eyebrows. The green clad man was known as Maito Gai. Though he was a somewhat unusual person it didn't mean that he wasn't capable in handling himself in a fight. He mostly specified in hand to hand combat and was extremely fast. It was said that when he went all out it was nearly impossible to follow his movements.

Last but not lease was the female member of the instructing team. She had long black hair that went pass her shoulders, and piercing red eyes. Her outfit comprised of a red shirt that had four thin white and black checkered lines from her right shoulder to the bottom of her shirt and black pants. The woman's name was Kurenai Yuhi. Despite that she was a sight for the eyes it didn't mean that she wasn't able to handle herself. She mostly preferred to use genjutsu which were moves that would cause the person that it was placed upon to be in an illusion or to conceal something. Even though most people who were skilled enough to could perform such a thing, she was considered to be one of the best.

"All right everyone, today we're just going to continue from where we left off in our last training session and that was hand to hand to combat." informed Kakashi in a lethargic tone of voice. "If you would go ahead and start things up Gai."

"YOSH!" bellowed the green clothed man. "All of you who are burning with the fire of youth are exceptional and this is a tremendous way to demonstrate it." All the students there said nothing as they were confused on how to respond to one of Maito Gai's rants. Everyone that is except for one that is.

"Incredible Gai sensei." Amongst the group of students there was someone who showed the same enthusiasm as the older man. As a matter of fact, the two of them were virtually identical, even down to the same type of haircut and eyebrows. The person who was like a miniature Gai was Maito's own personal student, Rock Lee.

"Could we please get back to the matter at hand?" asked Kurenai hoping to avoid seeing anymore awkward moments. Luckily her request was accepted as everyone focus back on why they were there. "First up is Ino Yamanaka versus TenTen. Would both please step forward?"

Stepping forward was the two girls. While Ino was dressed in her usual attire, the other girl, identified as TenTen was dressed differently. The outfit that she had on was a white Japanese style shirt with red trim that went along with her semi tight red pants. As for her hair she had brown locks that were done in two buns on the top of her head.

"Remember. Hand to hand combat only. Weapons of any sort are not permitted." repeated Kurenai. That little reminder was mostly directed toward TenTen who was more a costume in using weapons and any flying projectiles. She was so good that she was even able to throw a pencil with such skill that it actually embedded deeply into a large book. That of course didn't mean she was hopeless when it came to hand to hand.

Soon the match up began and both girls went at one another. Although the match up was entertaining there was someone amongst the viewers whose mind was elsewhere. That person was Naruto Uzumaki, newly discovered holder of the Nine-Tailed Fox.

"_It's been about a week since I discovered that I have a demon spirit contained within me and it still hard to believe. Now that I know I have to wonder what to do with this knowledge. Should I never transform again? Or use it to establish myself?"_ That thought had Naruto scolding himself. _"What am I thinking? Using this latest predicament to make myself look good would make me like Sasuke. Besides, I don't even know what I've acquired become of being able to have some control of the fox spirit."_

Naruto was so consumed with his thoughts that he didn't realize that someone had sat themselves down beside him. "You keep with hard of thinking you might burn a fuse." Snapping out of his thoughts the blonde looked to his side and saw that spoke up was Kiba Inuzuka. Not that far away was his dog, Akamaru. "And in your case you don't have that many to spare."

"Very funny dog boy. Is there a reason why you're talking to me or are you just trying to irate me?" Naruto was clearly not in the mood to trade words with Kiba but was doing his best in keeping himself from going too far.

"Just wanted to know how you did it." was Kiba's response. It came as such a surprise that Naruto couldn't up with a immediately reply for a while. "How were you able to escape those creatures that attacked the school?"

"I don't know what you're talking about." lied the blonde. Naruto wasn't so quick to reveal what happen that day. It may cause more suspicion on him than he preferred to have.

"Don't try to deny it. Do you think that the ones that were in the class with Hinata wouldn't say anything about what you did?" Cursing himself for forgetting about such a thing, Naruto realized that he couldn't keep up with the denial "I'm not asking for the complete story. Just the gist of what happen." Unlike before, Kiba was asking in a calm voice. "After all, I did help you that day when I didn't have to."

"Fine. You want the short version of what happen, here it is. Went to classroom, saw creatures tormenting students, made them case after me and was able to escape before they could get me. That's pretty much all that there is to what happen."

"Then how were they taken cared of?" wondered Kiba who seemingly was fully convinced about the story. "No way would they have left without any kind of struggle."

"Don't ask me why they left. I was nowhere near them when they decided to leave." Naruto quickly lied. "I may be known to act before I think but even I'm not that crazy to try to fight those things by myself." _"Or at least not enough to actually admit that I would do that." _Luckily it looked as though that Kiba was going to buy his excuse which was a relief to Naruto. It wouldn't last long when he noticed that Akamaru was sniffing him. "What's the deal with your dog? I can't smell that good."

Noticing what his animal partner was doing, Kiba picked him up. "What's the deal Akamaru?" What followed next was a conversation between man and animal and where he was Naruto didn't say anything since he had no really know what to say. After a while it appeared like the conversation had come to an end. "Akamaru said that your scent is different than before." It was then that Kiba actually to a sniff of the blonde. "Now that he mentioned that, you're scent _is_ different. Can't put my finger on it but it's like your old scent is mixed with another one that I'm familiar with but I'm not sure from where."

Starting to become worried that the truth might come out and into the open, Naruto didn't the first thing that came to him. "Gee, Kiba. I didn't know that you cared." He quickly jested. "I mean, sniffing me and knowing what my scent is. As much as I'm flattered I have to decline. I just don't swing that way."

Those words got their desired reaction as Kiba was close to slugging him. Of course, there was an another reason for the taunting and that was to get the dog boy no longer thinking about how he managed to get away that day with a scratch. "However, I wanted to say thanks for helping. Both you and Shino really helped me by getting my friends to safety. Speaking of which, where is Shino? I thought I saw him here."

"He's just finishing his training match." informed Kiba. Looking over to the training ring Naruto saw that Shino had just putting the finishing touches on his opponent. Though he didn't see what actually took place he had a pretty good what had happen. Apparently Shino had managed to get some of his bugs on his opponent without his knowing. So as the match up was going on the bugs were slowly sapping away the person's chakra to the point that he could no longer put up a fight.

"My, wasn't that an impressive display." muttered the blonde in a quiet tone. "But of course, that is to be expected seeing as Shino is one of the best technically sound people in our class." For his part there wasn't any argument from Kiba. "He's probably right up there with Shikamaru when it comes to creating strategies. Maybe he's even better."

"Next up to the ring is Naruto Uzumaki." Hearing his name, Naruto walked into the ring. As he was walking in, Shino was walking out. When the two were about to pass one another they gave one another understanding nods of the head. "And his opponent will be…" Scrolling down the lists of those who have yet to fight, Kakashi had seemingly found a suitable opponent. "Sasuke Uchiha."

The announcement of that match up caused a variety of reactions to those around. Some were eager to see the performance of the only Uchiha left in Konoha, most of the females simply wanting to watch the young man who wanted their feelings for to be accepted and the few who wanted to see the Uzumaki boy get a beating. One of those people being Neji Hyuga, the cousin of Hinata, who had no love lost for the blonde.

Getting up, Sasuke headed for his match. He appeared to be very confident on it being an easy victory that he almost seemed to have a swagger as he came forward. "This is really a shame." remarked the Uchiha with a smirk on his face. "I was hoping for a worth person to fight but I end up having you as my opponent." Not taking kindly to those intended insults, Naruto allowed a heated glare to come over his face. "At least I'll be able to end this without much fuss."

"Don't be so quick to judge." retorted Naruto. His was barely able to maintain his anger in check but was fortunately able to keep a level head. "I may surprise you." Not taking the warning seriously, Sasuke merely scoffed.

"If you two are done talking, can we please begin?" asked Kurenai. When she noticed that both boys were ready to begin she raised her hand in the air. "Then by my mark…go."

Immediately after getting the go ahead, Naruto went on the offense. He tried to deliver a kick but it was easily avoided by Sasuke simply ducking his head. Not letting that get him down, Naruto again tried to deliver a blow but like his previous attempt it was made no contact.

After dodging the second attempted blow, Sasuke went down and swept the legs out from underneath Naruto. Following it up right away he drove his foot into the chest of fallen opponent. "Didn't you say something by surprising me? If that was me easily beating you then I'm not really surprised." When all he got was the sounds of the blonde gasping for air, Sasuke started to leave the ring, thinking that he was the victor.

"Now where do you think you're going?" Getting back on his shaky feet, Naruto stared at the man with a glare that didn't show any of the weariness that his body was feeling. "This match isn't over just yet." Unknowingly to the blonde was that the pain that he had been feeling was slowly going away. "But if you wish to call it quits go ahead. I won't stop you."

Becoming quite fed up with the continuous verbal jabs that were being sent his way, Sasuke decided to go for the kill, in a matter of speaking. Charging forward he went to give the finishing blow. It appeared that the end was actually going to happen but the unexpected happen.

Naruto saw the blow coming and despite his earlier words of confidence he was ready to be struck down. However, as Sasuke was coming at him he started to see in a different way. He started to see him in slow motion and he wasn't the only one as everything was moving just as slow. It was as though everything was in slow motion.

Not allowing such an opening to pass him by, Naruto maneuvered himself so that he could grasp Sasuke's arm and using his momentum to his advantage tossed his opponent to the ground. Caught momentarily off guard by being taken down in such a way, Sasuke got back to his feet and was ready to go again. "I'm surprised. I didn't thin that you would be able to do such a move."

"What can I say? I'm just full of surprises." _"So many surprises that even _I'm_ not aware of."_ They again went at one another but unlike last time things were going in a different direction. As the two continued to fight, Naruto continued to experience in seeing the match going in slow motion. That just made it easier to see his opponent's movements and counter it with one of his own.

All those who were watching couldn't understand what was going on. Before it even started everyone automatically presumed that the Uchiha was going to emerge as victor. However, they were witnessing that the blonde was slowly getting the upper hand and was taking control of the fight. Another thing that was happening was that Naruto's confidence was growing.

"What's the matter Uchiha? Starting to lose your touch?" Not taking the taunts too kindly, Sasuke charged forward but it only resulted in the attempted blow being avoided and receiving a shot to the back of his head. "Perhaps that's not it. Maybe the Uchiha family isn't as good as everyone thinks they are."

That was the final straw as Sasuke glared at him with absolute anger. The glare would only be intensified as his eyes were now red with the center being black and around the center were two tomoe like markings. It was clear that he had activated his Sharingan.

"My, apparently I must've struck a nerve." Naruto continually taunted, not being affected by the red eyed glare. "Apparently you're finally taking me serious." Getting into a fighting stance he readied himself. "Then I will as well. But let's make this quick. I have other things to take care of." With no further hesitation the two went at one another and this time things were more even now that that Sasuke was using his Sharingan to help anticipate his opponent's moves. This continued for a few minutes and and neither one were ready to give up.

"_I hate to admit it but the bastard's good."_ thought Naruto as he tried to regain his breath. _"As much as I hate to admit it but if this keeps up I'll end up on the losing end of this match. I need to do something before it's too late."_ It was then that he came up with something. Closing his eyes he began to concentrate. _"Okay you damn fox. Give me some of your power for a little boost." _Though he was hoping Naruto wasn't actually expecting for the nine tails to actually comply. That was why when a strong chakra started to flow through him he couldn't help but be a little surprised.

His little chakra boost wouldn't go unnoticed as all those around could practically feel it. _"What's going on?"_ wondered Kurenai to herself, not realizing that everyone else was thinking along the same thing. _"There's no way that a boy such as him could have this much chakra in him. How is it possible?"_

Soon the power increase came to an end and Naruto was ready to continue. "All right, are you ready where we left off Sasuke?" He didn't get a response as the person in question wasn't able to form any type of reply as he was unable to believe what he had witness. "I'll take your silence as a yes. Well, here I go." In a blink of an eye Naruto speed forward and before any kind of counter could be made delivered a strong elbow thrust in Sasuke's sternum. Stepping back he watched as his opponent collapsed face first to the ground and there was no sign of him getting back up anytime soon.

A shroud of silence came over the area as no one knew what to say about what they saw. All of them were completely surprised from the unexpected scene. It wouldn't go away until Kakashi spoke up. "The winner of the match…Naruto Uzumaki."

It was with that announcement that everybody finally snap out of the shock. A variety of reactions took place. Most of the girls hurried over to the fallen Uchiha who still had not gotten back up, as they did so they would occasionally send heated stares in the blonde's direction but there was a few of them who were amazed by what he did. For boys, most of them started to gather around Naruto and said their amazement about his performance; the most vocal was Rock Lee. Lastly was the three instructors who were shocked about what they saw.

"AMAZING!" shouted Maito Guy. Much like his young pupil he was excited about the match. "That was an exceptional example of the fire of youth." While he had no trouble in expressing what he was feeling, the same couldn't be said for his two companions as they were having a private conversation between them.

"Quite impressive wouldn't you say Kakashi?" asked Kurenai. "That would definitely be considered an upset. Let's not forget that the two were basically on different ends of the standings."

"Also considering that the one who won was the dead last of the class." added Kakashi in a voice that was mostly laid-back but there was a trace of surprise in it as well. Glancing over he caught sight of the boy that their conversation was focusing on. _"But it looks as though he didn't come out of it easily."_

What the one eyed instructor was referring to was Naruto breathing heavily and was slightly swaying side to side. "Note to self: don't be doing that again anytime soon. That was more power that I'm use to when I transform into Fox. Apparently my body isn't able to handle such power at the moment." Luckily Naruto was able to recover from the aftereffects of the increase chakra and it was then that he really noticed that everybody had their attention on Sasuke or on him. _"This isn't good. I guess I went too far with that little stunt of mine."_ Knowing that their was going to be questions that he preferred to not answer, Naruto quickly hurried off and didn't stop until he was a few blocks away.

Sure that he was by himself, Naruto started to replay what just happened in his head. _"That's something that I can't do again. At least not until I get a better handle on these new abilities. One thing for sure, I can't do it anywhere in the village. I need to find a place that I can practice in secrecy."_ Thinking it over for a bit the demon container finally came up with an idea. _"I think I know of such a place."_ With that he once again started to run, only this time towards the outskirts of the village.

-/-/-/-/-

"_Yeah, I think this'll work nicely."_ What Naruto was referring to an area that was deep in the forest of Konoha. It worked perfectly as it was so secluded that it was unlikely for anyone to come around and take notice of him. Another benefit was due how the area was it would help to get him more adapt with his new form. _"I guess now is a better time than any to get start training."_

Like with the previous time he concentrated and just as expected he was now in his demon form. However, that wasn't the end of it though. Once again he closed his eyes; he put his hands together to make some kind of sign. _"Okay. Just do what the old man told you."_

-/-/-/-/-

Flashback (Yesterday)…

"All right now. Listen and listen closely." instructed Jiraiya in absolute seriousness. "I'm going to help teach you how to perform a genjutsu that'll really help you out."

"Why do we need to learn such a thing in the first place?" asked Naruto. "I mean, when I transformed I look completely different and besides, my ability in doing genjutsu is pretty much sucks."

"Because one, if you even change you transform what you're wearing doesn't and that I might help connect you and your other self. Secondly, it would be a good idea to have an additional disguising in to prevent any unnecessary suspicion."

Absorbing all that was said, Naruto remained silent for a moment. "Fine then, I get it. Teach me genjutsu. Hopefully it'll be worth it."

-/-/-/-/-

"_All right, concentrate on what you want it to be and put the needed amount of chakra to bring out."_ Once having what he needed Naruto brought it and when he did he felt a feeling through most of his body. When the feeling went away he opened his eyes and looked at what was different. One thing that he became aware of was that the whisker markings that he had on his cheeks were gone. Not permanently of course.

Another thing was that instead of wearing his usual outfit he now had a sleeveless black t-shirt that was semi tight, matching pants and black sandals that went halfway up his shins and left his toes exposed. Another noticeable thing about his new outfit was on the shirt. Glancing down on the front of his shirt he saw that there outlined in white was the head of a fox. _"Not bad. Not bad at all. Though, I don't recall having the fox design on my shirt." _Putting away that thought for the time being he got back to the matter at hand. _"Now, it's time to get to why I came here."_

For the next few hours, Naruto trained himself in his form. It was nothing really remarkable about what he was doing. All he was doing was testing what this new transformation was capable of. When he called it for the day he was tired but very satisfied by the results. _"It's getting late. I should probably head on home before its get too late."_ With the quick motion he released the genjutsu and transformed back normal. Once that was done he started to run back to the village, maneuvering in between the trees.

He was running so quickly that he almost missed it when he saw something flying in his direction. To his relief Naruto managed to duck down enough to avoid as the object hit the tree that was at his side. Looking up he saw that the flying projectile was a kunai and how embedded it was into the tree it was thrown very aggressively.

"Sorry about that." said someone as they came over to his direction. "Oh, it's you." Standing before the blonde was TenTen. "I must say that I'm surprised to see you here."

"I could you ask you the same thing." countered Naruto. Reaching over he yank the kunai out of the tree then tossed it back to the girl. "Target practice I presume? After all, you don't have the moniker of weapon mistress for nothing."

Smiling at the blonde's remarks, TenTen easily caught the weapon and put it away. "You're right about me doing target practice. However, I'm not the only one who's out here." Before she had the opportunity to explain a green blur entered the scene and suddenly coming to a stop between the two of them. "It's nice of you to show yourself Lee."

The green blur was in fact Rock Lee, the most fanatic when it came to training that probably second only to Gai. When he got back to his feet he immediately turn his sights on the two other people. "That was an amazing example of the power of youth. You're marksmanship is impressive as always TenTen and the way that you were able to avoid that attack Naruto. It was magnificent. I'm hoping that this joint practice with TenTen will help me to act as quickly as you did. Tell me, how were you able to avoid it so quickly?"

"Just reflex I guess." That wasn't necessarily a lie as Naruto purely reacted when it came to avoiding the kunai. _"Though how I was able to do so is beyond me."_

"I guess what you did earlier today wasn't a fluke after all." commented TenTen. "I mean, beating Sasuke like you did was an unexpected event."

"I don't know if I should take offense to that or not." pondered Naruto. Though he didn't know her that well, he knew that TenTen wasn't trying to be callous with her words. She was merely was stating the truth, nothing more. "Besides, I don't see what the big deal is. All I did was won a sparring match."

"A sparring match that was against one of the top two people in the group." reinforced weapon mistress. "Including Sasuke the other person who's recognized as one of the best is Neji Hyuga. For you to beat one of them is a complete upset. Especially since before what happen today you were previously ranked as last in the group."

"What a person's ranking is doesn't matter." Naruto stated with absolute seriousness. "Anyone can be anyone giving the right circumstances. What I did today is a perfect example of that. In fact, given the chance I bet that Lee could beat Neji if the chance presented itself."

Unnoticed by the blonde but when he said those words it set off Lee to start on one of his well known rants. "Well said Naruto. What you said is exactly what I think is the truth. That anyone can accomplish anything if they want it enough."

"What can I say? I'm only speaking what I believe is true. To hell with those who believe that they're better simply because of what they were born with. It's take a true person to work hard to make themselves. Of course, I'm not as crazy to do the insane training program that you and Gai put yourselves constantly through. Talk about fanatical." That little joke got opposite reactions from his two companions. While TenTen laughed at how true those words were, Lee looked at him opened mouth expression. It almost as though what he said was a sin.

Thankfully he didn't allow him to go into any type of rebuttal as an idea came to him. "You guys said that you were helping to train one another before I interrupted correct?" When the two in question nodded their heads in confirmation the smile that he was holding in finally broke through. "Then what do you say we make it a three way training session?" He got his answer when both of them had the same smiles that he had on their faces.

-/-/-/-/-

"Damn. I'm sore as hell." Opening the door, Naruto stumbled into the darken apartment. Fumbling around he managed to find the light switch and allowed the lights to brighten the place up. "I'm so glad that I'm a quick healer."

The reason for the blonde's aches and pains was an easy to figure about. It wasn't until recently that he had completed his extended training session with Lee and TenTen. Though the session proved to be tiresome it helped to shed light on some things. During the training he didn't experience the same things as with the sparring match that he had earlier with Sasuke.

One of those things was that everything didn't appear to so down which proved to be a disadvantage for him as it made it nearly impossible to keep up with Lee's amazing speed while avoiding all of the attempts of TenTen throwing a array of weapons as him. The other was that he was unable to draw out any of the fox's power. Naruto didn't know what to make of it but having the suspicion that his body was his body not being to withstand another boost so soon after the previous one. Fortunately he was skilled enough to hold his own against the both of them.

Now he was home and judging how things was when he entered he was the only one there. "I guess Jiraiya is going to be gone until tomorrow. Probably boozing it up with some women and I don't want to know what going to be happening between them. At least the place will be quiet tonight." Too exhausted to keep his eyes open Naruto headed for him with the intention to go straight to sleep. Quickly changing into his sleeping attire that composed of a worn out t-shirt and boxers he collapsed on his bed. "Ow. What the hell?"

Getting back up he removed the covers and saw that there was a small scroll on his bed and beside it was a small white card. Becoming curious he picked up the card to see what it said. "I thought that it would be good thing that you learn something that was connected with your father." Naruto could tell by the handwriting that it was Jiraiya who left the item in his bed. "Read the scroll but don't do anything stupid afterward. But judging you that's easier said than done." _"Very funny you old pervert."_

Dropping the card Naruto opened the scroll to read its contents. What was inside was a detail description in performing a technique and it seemed like a pretty good one. _"The shadow clone jutsu. This sounds interesting."_

* * *

There you go people. I hope that you enjoyed reading what was in this chapter. I hope that you liked how the little match up that Naruto and Sasuke had. I'm not all that good at describing fight scenes so I hope that what I did was good enough. If there are any complaints leave them in a review. 

As for the scene that Naruto had with Lee and TenTen, it's like what I stated in a previous chapter. I want to have some of the characters have more involvement in this story than what they had in the actual series. Also, I thought that developing a friendship between those three was an interesting thing to do even though that Lee and TenTen have a friendship with Neji as well.

That's pretty much it. Hopefully I'll have the next chapter out later this month. If not then the start of the following month. Until then, see ya.


	4. Reveal

Here it is. Another chapter to my story and I have to say that I really liked doing this one. A little warning before you go ahead and read this chapter, around the end I'm going to refer Naruto differently than just his name. If you get confuse don't worry I'll explain it at the ending author noties. Now, as for the disclaimer, I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Chapter 4:  
Reveal

"I don't think that I should be here." Naruto muttered quietly. Currently he was at Konoha's annual festival. The festival was to celebrate their village being saved from the nine-tailed fox. While this was something that Naruto enjoyed in the past, he couldn't say the same thing now. "It wouldn't be hard for me to leave without drawing attention to myself."

"Don't be so rash in making that decision." spoke Jiraiya as he stood beside his young charge. Amazingly inside of gazing at all the women that were dressed in their festive attire he was peering down at the blonde beside him. "This is a celebration. I don't see why you would want to leave."

"Maybe it has something to do with this celebration being about the 'death' of a fox spirit that is currently residing within me." Naruto quickly calmed himself down as he didn't want to say something that could probably be overheard. "I don't know if it's me or this damn fox but being here is starting to become uncomfortable. Give me one good reason why I should stay."

"You're leaving Naruto?" asked someone that was outside of the blonde's line of sight. Naruto turned around to answer but his words fell short when he caught sight of the person.

Right before Naruto's eyes was his good friend, Hinata but that wasn't the reason for his inability to speak. She was dressed in a dazzling lavender kimono that had white plum leafs sown into it and a purple sash tired around her waist. Her hair, while it wasn't done in a formal fashion it still looked good as it was being held in place by two small hairclips.

"My, if it isn't the eldest Hyuga sibling." commented Jiraiya. You could practically feel the grin that had come on the white haired man's face as he was observing the moment between the two. "I'm afraid what you heard was true. Are young blonde here has decided to-"

"…That I should stick around for a while longer." Naruto quickly butted in. "After all, it wouldn't seem right to go at the moment and leave one of my friends be herself." It was then that he set his sights on the girl in front of him. "What do you say Hinata? Would it be all right if I keep you company during the festival?"

Being asked that question shocked Hinata as she hadn't expected to hear such a thing. She quckly got over the surprise as she gave a small nod. Right after she nodded, Hinata was pulled away as Naruto grabbed a hold of her as he ran pass.

"Have fun you two." exclaimed Jiraiya as he watched the two go. "Remember, you're kids so don't do anything too offensive." His remarks received a few choice words from Naruto and a blush from Hinata. Jiraiya couldn't help but chuckle at how the two of them acted with one another. _"Those two really are suited for each other. If only that knucklehead would realize it."_

The older man would put those thoughts on hold as he caught sight of two very attractive women walking by. _"Oh well, that's Naruto's problem. Right now I need to do some research."_ With a prevented smirk on Jiraiya's face he hurried after the two women.

-/-/-/-/-

Naruto was glad that he decided to stay at the festival. It gave him the chance to momentarily forget about the issues that came from discovering the other side of his life. Also, it allowed him to help his friend as even though he didn't say anything he could tell that something was bothering Hinata. While Naruto had an idea what the reason could be he wasn't going to ask as he had no right to stick his nose in her business. _"She'll tell me if she wants to."_

Though he was okay with doing such a thing it didn't mean that he wouldn't stand back as someone decided to make themselves known. "So, this is where you've been." Both Naruto and Hinata instantly knew who the voice belonged to without even seeing the person.

Stepping into their line of sight was a boy who was a year older than them. He was wearing a formal kimono that was simple white with matching sash. His hair was long enough that it reached the middle of his back which was tied into a simple ponytail but the most identifiable thing about the boy were his eyes which were the same as Hinata's.

"When looking for someone weak and unimportant just look for someone who's the same." quoted the boy as if stating a fact. "Isn't that right, Hinata?"

"That question had Hinata bowing her head down flinching as though the words physically hurt her. She seemingly was going to do nothing and take the berating but luckily someone stepped in. Lifting her head up, she saw that Naruto had put himself in front of Hinata in a protective manner.

"You take that back Nejji." The anger could practically be felt from the blonde as he was ready to get physical if need be. "Just because you're her cousin it doesn't give you the right to insult Hinata." Due to how they were position Naruto couldn't see how appreciative the Hyuga girl was.

Apparently taking too kindly to the blonde, the eyes of Neji changed slightly as the veins around the eyes became visible, indicating that he activated the Hyuga family ability, the Byakugan. Though the Byakugan did some incredible things, Neji was simple using it to stare down the boy before him. "Stay out of this Uzumaki. This is between us Hyugas. It does not concern you."

While most people would be affected in someway by the Byakugan enforced glare that couldn't be said for Naruto as he didn't appeared to be affected by it in the lease. "Like hell it doesn't concern me. Hinata's my friend and when someone messes with one of my friends they're messing with me." Becoming even more defiant, he stepped closer to the point that he and Neji were only a few feet apart. "So why don't you go ahead and start something with me?"

A fight between the two would certainly have happen if it wasn't for the timely appearance of some individuals. "Ah, here you are my youthful friend. We've been looking everywhere for you." Entering the scene was green clothed wearing boy, Rock Lee.

He wasn't the only person to show up as not that far behind him was the weapon mistress, Tenten. "Slow down Lee. This isn't a race."

"Sorry Tenten." Lee apologized. "I only thought that I could use this search as a way to train myself." That answer only resulted in the bun haired girl to put her hand to her forehead and sigh.

"I swear you've been hanging around Gai to long." It was about that time Tenten notice the additional company that was there. "Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't realize that you were there. It's good to see you Hinata and Naruto."

"It's all right." reassured Hinata in a polite voice. She did a slight bow to help prove that there weren't any hard feelings.

"She's right." Naruto added. "We know that when Lee goes into 'training mode' it occasionally causes others to lose sight of their surroundings." It was obvious by the way that the four of them talked you could tell that they were friends with one another.

"Do you see?" exclaimed Lee. "Naruto understands where I'm coming from. "He knows what it means to train extensively."

"Hey now, I wouldn't go that far. I'm only trying to help you get back on Tenten's good side before she decides to use you as target pratice. Remember last time I allowed her to do that with me I was basically a walking pincushion." Right after he said that Naruto had to duck his head as a senbon needle was aimed at him. "Calm down Tenten. I didn't mean anything by it. In a way I'm saying how impressive you are when it comes to weaponry."

To Naruto's relief that calmed TenTen down. "You should be thankful that there's something that I need to take care of. Neji, your uncle had me and Lee come and get you. He wishes to talk to you about something."

Without so much as a word Neji began to walk off. Before he left completely left though he would send one a hard stare toward Hinata and Naruto. Soon after doing so, Neji left with Lee and TenTen following not far behind. However, as those two left you could see the look of remorse on their faces.

"Well, now wasn't that a peasant conversation?" muttered Naruto in complete sarcasm. "We really should do that again." His attempt to lighten up the mood didn't work as Hinata continued to have that down look on her face. "Come on, don't let what your cousin said get to you. He doesn't know what he's talking about. All he was doing was being an ass as usual."

Though Hinata nod her head in understanding Naruto could tell that Neji's words were still weighing heavily on her mind. He wouldn't have the opportunity to try and fix it as he would become sidetracked. "Speaking of asses, here comes another one."

What Naruto was referring to was Sasuke walking in their direction. He wouldn't be alone as following close by were both Sakura and Ino who were wearing pink and purple kimonos respectively. Soon as the two groups got eye to eye with one another some tension could be felt as both boys glared at each other. This didn't go unnoticed by the girls as they didn't like what was taking place.

"Naruto, stop glaring at Sasuke." demanded Ino who wasn't trying to hide her anger about the situation. "If you don't I'll make you regret it."

Breaking away from the glaring contest, Naruto turned his sights to the girl. "You should really take it easy Ino. Continue to glare could lead to early wrinkling." That verbal jab got its desired response as the platinum blonde girl became even angrier.

Accomplishing what he wanted the blonde happen to glance over to Sakura who had remained quiet during the whole thing. She just stood there with a look that seemed to lack any real emotion. No one really took notice of it except for Naruto. _"What's with her? Usually she would be along side Ino in reprimanding me for annoying the 'almighty' Sasuke. Could it have something to do with what happen at the hospital?"_ Before he could think more about it he was broken away from those thoughts as someone called out to him.

""Hey, idiot. What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be off somewhere being a fool?" mocked Sasuke. The Uchiha was hoping to get a rise out of Naruto to help relief some stress. To his dismay though he didn't get what he wanted as Naruto managed to maintain his composure."

"Cleve Sasuke. Did it take you all day to come up with that?" The annoyance that the Uchiha was already feeling that day was slowly beginning to grow at that remark that he received. "Are you just trying to get me riled up because I beat you in the sparring match that we had?"

Once again the words from the blonde got on the nerve of Sasuke as he started to clench and unclench his hands. "That was a fluke." he spat. You could feel the anger that was behind the boy's words. "There's no way that it would happen again."

Whether he meant to or not that remark from Sasuke got a reaction from Naruto. His eyes harden as he sent his sights solely on the Uchiha. "Do you wish to find out? Or are you worried that history may repeat itself?"

The tension between the two was becoming so thick that you could practically cut it with a knife. If left unchecked it would certainly lead to something physical to happen. Fortunately that something would come and be a timely diversion. "That's enough you two." The one to speak up was a man in his fifties. He was wearing a red and white robe with matching cap. Despite his age the man appeared to be happy as there was a smile upon his slightly wrinkled face with the gray beard on his chin. "This is supposed to be a celebration. Not a time to fight."

Both of the boys' reactions though different were the same as they became annoyed by the older man's interruption. Sasuke would send one final glare at Naruto before leaving as Ino and a somewhat reluctant Sakura following. It was only when they were out of sight that the young Uzumaki stopped glaring.

"You didn't have to do that you know? I could've handled it on my own." Naruto informed with a slight irration in his voice. "I'm not some child to be looked after."

Whether he was offended by those words the old man just smiled once more. "That may be so but do an old man this favor by playing along. After all, it's been a while since we last saw each other."

Soon whatever annoyance that Naruto had left was gone as a small smirk came over his face. "Indeed it has been, Lord Hokage. I believe that it has been a few months since we had a chance to talk."

"Please. Just call me Sarutobi." requested the Hokage. "You've known me since you were a young boy. That goes for you too, lady Hinata."

Being suddenly added into the conversation, Hinata was briefly caught off guard before she could respond. "Thank you very much…Sarutobi." Unnoticed by her was that Naruto was smiling as he was glad that Hinata was starting to get over what Neji said earlier.

"_It's good to see that she's recovering."_ Naruto thought as he saw that the young Hyuga was actually beginning to smile as she talked with Sarutobi. _"I prefer it when Hinata is happy. That's when she's her true self."_

Before anything else could go any further a disturbance suddenly began. A strong gust of air came over the area. During that time someone appeared and right before Naruto and Hinata's eyes someone came behind the Hokage. Though they saw it neither one could stop the person as he leapt away with Sarutobi in his grasp. It wasn't until they reached the front of the city hall building that the man stopped.

Whoever the person was he couldn't be identified as he was concealed by a purple cloak. The only other identifiable thing about him was his cold black eyes and the metal headband on his forehead with the simple of a music note that had what resembled a snake wrapped around it. He wouldn't be alone as soon there was more people who surrounded him and like him their identities were concealed as they had on full covering masks that only had the eye area to be seen.

"Nobody try anything or you'll have yourself a dead Hokage." warned the man who apparently was the leader of the whole thing. He showed his seriousness by placing a kunai to the Hokage's throat. "Do as we say and we'll leave without incident." Reluctantly it appeared as though the people of Konoha did what they were instructed.

"Why are you doing this?" questioned Sarutobi. Not showing any fear of what could happen to him. "What possible could make you do this?"

"Oh, it's nothing really. We just would like to have a certain item. That item being the Forbidden Scroll." Immediately after that was said everyone within hearing distance was shocked.

"Are you insane!" yelled one of the villagers. "The Forbidden Scroll contains the details of all the abilities that have been in our village."

To retaliate to the villager's outburst one of the invaders threw a kunai that became embedded into the man's right leg. "It would be wise for everyone to go ahead and do as we ask they are told and it'll be over."

Going through the area the intruders maneuvered the villagers into smaller, controllable groups. Though there were those who wish to fight back they had to control themselves since the Hokage's life was still at risk. One of those who wanted to do something was Naruto who was barely able to contain himself. _"I got to do something. I can't just stand by and watch. While I can't do anything like I am now maybe my other self can do what needs to be done."_

Luckily for him it wasn't that hard for him to find a secluded place as there was a mass confusion of people being moved around. So during the commotion Naruto entered an alley. Being sure that the place was secure he did the transformation. _"Now it's time to get to work."_

-/-/-/-/-

"Sir, we've found what we were looking for." Coming over was one of the invaders who presented their commander a large scroll that was rolled up. Though it couldn't be seen you could basically tell that the leader of the whole scheme was happy about how things were going.

"I sure love it when things go according to plan." Reaching over with the hand holding the kunai the man went to grab the scroll. Just as he was about to grab a hold of the item in question it was intercepted.

"For shame on you." Standing a few feet away was Naruto in his transformed state. In his hands was the Forbidden Scroll. "Taking something that doesn't belong to you. Where are your manners?" There wasn't any form of retaliation as everyone was shocked. From the invaders, the Konoha villagers and even the Hokage were speechless from the arrival of the unexpected visitor.

"Who are you?" questioned the commander of the invading group. "Maybe I should ask _what_ you are."

"Honestly, that's a question that I've been asking myself. So far I've yet to come up with an answer." While that answer was done in a humorous manner, what he said next was completely serious as there wasn't a hint of humor in those red eyes of his. "As for now, I'm someone who's here to stop you and kick your sorry ass out of Konoha. Whether that's done willingly or by force is up to you."

He would get his answer when two of the intruders came at him with the intent to kill. "I guess I got my answer." Strapping the Forbidden Scroll securely on his back, Naruto focus on what was before him. Using quick maneuvering he managed to affectively avoid the attempted strikes with the kunais.

When they tried to attack him on both sides it looked like they were going to succeed in their mission. That would prove to be not the case as right before they struck, their target seemingly vanished. "Keep it up you guys." The direction of the voice came from a top of one of the pillars as hanging onto it was a grinning Naruto. "I'm getting a good workout from this."

The taunting got the desired reaction as it furthered angered the aggressors as they launched a set of shuriken in his direction. The act proved to be futil as the weapons only made contact with the pillar. 'Close but no cigar." Once again Naruto had change position as he appeared before his two opponents. Grabbing a hold of their shirts he flung them behind him where they collided with the ground. Glancing over his shoulder he saw that neither one was going to get up anytime soon.

They may have been taken cared of but he was immediately met by another opponent who was charging at him with a dagger in hand. Though he had the element of surprise the attacker was quicken taken cared of. A she thrust the dagger forward; Naruto ducked underneath it and would capitalize by clasping his hand on the man's neck. He would follow it up by lifting him off the ground by the neck and driving him down to the ground which rendered him unconscious

His inspection of what he did would prove to be a mistake as he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his left shoulder. Reaching behind Naruto grabbed the source of his recent pain. Bringing it to his face he saw that it was a kunai and judging by the blood it appeared to have went halfway into his shoulder. Turning around he saw that the person who threw the kunai was one of the few remaining intruders and despite the mask you could tell that he was smiling at what he had accomplished.

Though Naruto could already feel the wound starting to heal itself it didn't mean that he wasn't feeling the pain that came from the attack. "You're going to pay for that." As he spoke Naruto didn't take notice that his voice had seemingly become more demonic.

Another thing that he failed to notice was that his eyes had become completely red. Even though he didn't realize the changes the same couldn't be said for all those who were witnessing what was transpiring. It was then that the spectators were starting to wonder if they were better off with the newcomer than the intruders.

Allowing his anger to momentarily get the better of him, Naruto charged toward the person who had cheap shot him. "I wouldn't do that if I were you." The sound of that voice put a halt in Naruto's potential strike. The voice came from the person holding Sarutobi captive. "If not then you'll have one dead Hokage on your hands." That not so subtle threat appeared to get through to Naruto as he slowly started to regain his composure. "Now do the smart thing and hand over the scroll."

For a moment Nartuo's eyes went completely red again as he let his anger to get the better of him. Thankfully it didn't last long as he remembered what was being threatened. Reluctantly he reached behind him and presented the Forbidden Scroll. Putting it on the ground he glared at his opposition. "Here you go. You have what you want. Now let the Hokage go." He would follow it by giving the scroll a push so that it began to roll toward them.

"You're obviously smarter than you look." taunted the cloaked man. It appeared like the barging was going to be done but that was merely false hope. "However, you did cause us some unwanted problems. Perhaps I should go ahead and leave you something to remind you of getting in someone else's business." He tried to punctuate what he said by driving his kunai into the Hokage's neck. Seeing this, Naruto tried to get there to prevent it from happening but came to the realization that he wouldn't make it in time.

It appeared like Konoha was going to lose their leader. However, before the kunai could reach its destination, it was halted by an outside force. That force would be discovered to be a shadow that extended from the cloaked man to another man that belonged to the Nara family.

The man had black hair that was done in a similar style as Shikamaru's. He was wearing black pants with matching shirt that was underneath a tan sleeveless jacket. Another noticeable thing about him was the two scars that were on the right side of his face.

"_Thank you Shikaku."_ Knowing that Shikamaru's father would be able to keep his shadow hold on the cloaked man for the time being, Naruto turned back to the Forbidden Scroll which was about to be picked up by the person who managed to stab his shoulder earlier. Using his quick speed he was able to reach him and seemingly what was done on reflex slashed his claws across the right side of the man's face.

Instantly the man grabbed the side of his face that was terribly wounded, Naruto regained possession of the scroll. With the item safely back in his grasp he returned his attention back to the cloaked man and was surprise by what he was seeing. _"What the hell?"_

Usually when someone was caught in one of the Nara shadow techniques that person was only able to move if the one that performed the technique allowed it. That wasn't the case however. Try as he might Shikaku couldn't get the man to do what he wanted. In fact, it looked as though the man was actually gaining the upper hand of the struggle. Realizing that the possibility of the man actually breaking free was very likely, Naruto rushed in and got the Hokage away before it could happen.

Finally breaking free of the shadow possession move the cloaked man saw how things had changed. Most of his men were either unconscious or couldn't continue fighting. The item that they came for was unattainable and his potential hostage was no longer usable. Simply put the mission was a complete failure and all because of one reason. That reason being the strange person who appeared from out of nowhere and ruined his well thought out plan.

"_Damn him. If the circumstances were different I would certainly be able to deal with him."_ Though he thought along those lines he knew that now wasn't the time. _"However, now I must leave. I used most of my strength to free myself from that shadow move and the ANBU Black Ops will be showing up soon."_ Recognizing the situation that he was in; the cloaked man decided to make his exit. Before doing so he grabbed the man who got his face slashed by Naruto. Right before everyone's eyes the two of them disappeared.

"Son of a bitch! He got away again." After allowing his anger to run its course it was then that Naruto realize that everyone had their attention focus entirely on him. "Well, I think it's time for me to take my leave." He went ahead and tried to make a quick exit. Unfortunately for him he didn't that far as four men appeared out of nowhere and grabbed a hold of him. Try as he might Naruto couldn't get free as there were two men holding both of his arms. By being unable to escape and recognizing the masks that concealed the peoples' faces it wasn't hard for him to identify who they were.

"Ah, so the ANBU Black Ups have arrived. I guess it's better late than never." Naruto's remark resulted in his captors to tighten their grips on him. "For your information I'm one of the good guys." Despite his words being the truth the ANBU didn't know this. If left uncheck then things may end up bad but thankfully things didn't go that way.

"Let him go this instant." The person who made such a demand was none other than the Hokage. Somewhat reluctantly the ANBU did as instructed but stayed close by in case something were to happen. "I apologize for what they did."

"It's no problem." established Naruto while rubbing the strain out of his arms. "They were just doing their job. Though, they appear to be slipping." Again his words cause the anger within the ANBU to grow. "Now with that out of the way I'll be leaving."

"Before you do, mind telling us what your name is?"

There was no answer form Nartuo for a moment as if he was considering on answering or not. "Whatever name that you call me doesn't matter. But if you wish for a name then call me…Fox." With that said Naruto, now being identified as Fox, leapt onto a rooftop that was close by and followed it up by jumping onto another roof. He continued to do this until he was completely out of sight.

"Who the hell was that?" questioned one of the villagers. Throughout the crowd that question and many similar ones were being asked. No one was excluded in having speculations on what just occurred and that included one female Hyuga named Hinata.

"Hey, what's going on? What happen here?" Emerging from an alley that he hid in earlier was Naruto, now back to his usual self. Continuing with the act of confusion he looked about the scene. "Where are the cloaked guy and those people that was with him? Did the ANBU come to the rescue?"

"Naruto." Hurrying to his side, Hinata looked him over from head to toe for any injury. "What happened to you? One minute you were here then the next you were gone."

Thinking fast, Naruto said the first thing that came to him. "During the commotion I was knocked into the alley by one of those masked men. I must've hit my head on something because the next thing that I can remember is waking up and seeing this." That excuse, though sounding reasonable surprised Naruto as he didn't expected to come up with an excuse so quickly. "It's a shame that I was knocked out since I couldn't see how the ANBU saved the day."

"It wasn't the ANBY who did it, squirt." Entering the scene was Jiraiya who had a serious expression on his face. "The one who saved the day was some guy with long fiery orange hair. He took care of the intruders, saved Sarutobi and kept the Forbidden Scroll out of enemy hands." As the older man retold the incidents Naruto became more worried about someone connecting the dots. But the slight smirk that Jiraiya was giving him made him realize that he was only trying to help in making it appear that Naruto had no clue what happen. It was crude but affective move.

Before anything else could happen a group of familiar people were coming over. Those people being a small group of Hyuga that included Hiashi, Hanabi and Neji. "Hinata, come along. We're heading home." By the tone that was used there was no room for arguing. So after some quick exchanges of goodbye Hinata hurried off to catch up with her family.

"I think it's time for us to leave as well." informed Jiraiya. For his part there was no argument from Naruto. The two of them left, not once turning back to the crowd that was still buzzing about what transpired.

-/-/-/-/-

Next Day…

"It looks like you've become quite the celebrity." announced Jiraiya with a bit of humor in his voice.

"What are you blabbing about?" Naruto asked as he laid across the couch which he used to get some extra sleep. He got his answer when the white haired man dropped a newspaper on his lap. "Oh, you got to be fucking kidding me."

Right there on the front page of the paper was a large picture of him in his other form. That wasn't the only thing as there was an article attached that did a retelling of what happen the previous day. At the top of the article in large bold letters were the words: 'MYSTEROUS BOY APPEARS AND SAVES HOKAGE'. Despite himself, Naruto had to chuckle at what he was looking at. "Now isn't this rich? Because of this and word of mouth everyone is going to know about me. More precise, they'll know about Fox. Why I came up with such a name is beyond me."

"How you came up with the name isn't important." stated Jiraiya who no longer had that humor in his voice. "With what happen yesterday there's no way that you can keep this a secret. Also, the chances that the people that the cloaked man is with will want to get revenge are very likely." His words seem to be sinking in as Naruto lowered his head to the ground. I'm not trying to be mean but you have to face the facts. If you still wish to be this village's protector, this'll only make things more difficult. You do understand that right?"

There wasn't any type of answer from Naruto and for a while Jiraiya wondered if he may have went too far with what he said. That though would go out the window as he heard what his young blonde haired charge said next. "Oh, I understand perfectly." Lifting his head up the elder man saw that Naruto had a look of confidence and a bit of cockiness. "And you know what? I wouldn't want it any other way."

* * *

Before I talk about anything else I should talk about that confusion that I mentioned earlier. As you probably already notice I've decided to refer Naruto as Fox when he is in his transformed state. The reason being is that I want to seperate the identities. If I didn't then you may forget that he's doing something in his tranformed state and not in his usual self. If you're still confused about what I'm talking about just contact me and I'll try to explain it to better to you.

As for this chapter, I hoped that you enjoyed it and how I developed the character interaction between the characters. More to the point how Naruto interacted with Hinata, Sasuke and Neji. I'm hoping to further touch on those character relationshps as the story progress. Of course, that doesn't mean it'll be right away.

Well, that's pretty much it. So please go ahead and leave a review and until next time, see ya.


	5. Abduction

Well, I'm back and with a new chapter. This will be the first of what's planned to be a three chapter arc. I hope that you like how this attended arc will be done. So anyways, go ahead and read the chapter and for the disclaimer, I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Chapter 5:  
Abduction

It appeared to be like any other day in Konoha. The people living there heading to where they needed to be. That was no exception for Naruto Uzumaki who was currently running about in the rebuilt school. As to why, the reason would be revealed as not far behind the blonde were two men and by the expressions on their faces they weren't happy.

"Uzumaki, stop running and accept your punishment." demanded one of the procurers. The chase had been going on for quite sometime and it had become quite annoying. Try as they might neither one couldn't grab him as every time they were close in doing so Naruto somehow managed to slip away and the chase would resume. "Don't you realize what you've done?"

For his part, Naruto just laughed. In fact, he actually seemed to be enjoying what was going on. This little scene continued as Naruto turned a corner of a building and mere moments later the two procurers followed. When they turned the corner they couldn't see their target anywhere. "Damn it. He disappeared again. We got to find him."

Doing as plan the two of them went in different directions. Had they looked around a little harder they would probably have notice that there was an unnoticed spectator. "Ha, ha. They must be losing their touch." Jumping down from a tree that was near by was none other than Naruto. "Or maybe I've became too good for them to catch me."

"You don't say Naruto?" asked someone that immediately put an end to the teenager's boasting. Slowly turning around Naruto came face to face with a man older than him. He had brown hair that was done in a high ponytail. The clothes he was wearing were semi casual green shirt and pants. However, the thing that stood out when you first saw him was the scar that he had across his nose.

"Hello there, Iruka. How's it going?" Naruto hoped that the casual talk would make what's to come easier. That wouldn't be the case as Iruka gave him a nonsense look. "I have a feeling that I'm not going to get away this time."

-/-/-/-/-

Naruto's line of thinking would be proven to accurate as he now stood in front of a classroom as he was being scolded by the teacher, Iruka Umino. I can't believe you would do such a thing Naruto. You've done some crazy stuff before but this takes the cake."

"I don't see what the big deal is." Naruto casually said. "All I did was do a little prank. So why is getting so worked up about it?"

"A little prank?! Is that what you call little?" Pointing out the window, Iruka was referring to a school wall that had a huge drawing of a fox that had its paws on top of a snake that had musical note markings on it. "What would posses you to do such a foolish thing?"

Smiling sheepishly Naruto rubbed the back of his head. "I thought that people would like it. I mean, a fox represents that guy calling himself Fox and the snake is for those guys that he beat up during the festival." Everyone couldn't help but be shocked by the blonde's secret meaning behind his prank. "Besides, I was bored and needed something to pass the time." And with that all of them groaned at the excuse.

"Well, if you were bored then allow me to help fix that." By the smile that was on Iruka's face Naruto again knew that he wasn't going to like whatever was going to happen next.

-/-/-/-/-

"You've done some foolish things in the past but this one rates right up there." It was now lunchtime and the students were using the time to either get something to eat or spend time with their friends. Now was no exception as Shikamaru, Choji and Hinata were gathered together as their blonde friend was hard at work. "Sometimes you can be so troublesome Naruto.

"Give it a rest Shikamaru." Naruto shot back. At the moment Naruto was doing his punishment by scrubbing away the picture that he made on the wall. "And can you really place this above all of my other pranks? What about the one last year with the chairs? Now, that was a classic." The recalling that moment had his friends laughing so hard that Choji nearly choked on his food.

That particular prank was definitely a memorable one. There was a teacher that none of the students liked as he would degrade them whenever possible. Becoming fed up with the constant tormenting, Naruto decided to get a little payback. So one day before school started he snuck into the teacher's classroom and put his plan to action.

By the time that school started all of the chairs in the classroom with the exception of the teacher's were stuck to the walls. The icing on the cake would come later though when the teacher sat down in his chair. When he tried to get up he found it difficult since there was superglue on the chair, resulting in him being stuck. It took most of the school day but the chairs were taken down and the teacher was freed from the chair though it would cost him a pair of pants.

"That was a classic prank. The best part being that they couldn't prove that it was me that did it." Laughing a bit more about that memory, Naruto went back to work on getting rid of the picture as most of it still remained on the wall. "It's a shame that I have to take this thing down. It could've been some sort of tribute to the city's newest defender."

"Don't be so quick to judge Uzumaki." To Naruto's chagrin Sasuke happen to walk by during the conversation.

"No one ask for your opinion, Uchiha." The hostility between the two apparently hadn't gone down since their encounter at the festival. "What are you blabbing about anyways?"

"You actually think that Fox is some kind of hero? Just because he showed up and saved the Hokage? How do we know that he did that so he could get the Forbidden Scroll for himself later on?"

"Maybe because he had the scroll in his grasp and never tried to run off with it. Also, from what I heard he was the one who took care of the creatures that attacked the school and the Hyugas." A small nod from Hinata confirmed her friend's words. "Besides, why are you so bothered about this Fox guy? Are you mad that he's getting more attention that you, the Uchiha prodigy?"

That little verbal jab did the trick as Sasuke seemingly lost his composure and was prepared to go at it with the blonde haired boy who was more than willing to comply. The fight would be stopped before it had a chance to start as both of them were frozen in their place. "Shikamaru, release me from your shadow."

To Naruto's relief his friend accepted his request and retracted his shadow from both Naruto and Sasuke. "Maybe you guys should put a rain check on your plans." advice Shikamaru in a casual voice. "Wouldn't want to risk getting in trouble of fighting would we?"

Fortunately those words appeared to get through the two of them as they didn't try to go at it again. Having nothing more to say, Sasuke walked off but not before giving Naruto a glare that was increased by him using his Sharingan. In response, Naruto gave him a glare of his own.

"Pain in the ass prick." Going back to the matter at hand the blonde got the rest of the picture scrubbed away. Soon school came to an end and the students headed for their respective homes. Among them was Hinata who was quietly to her home while looking toward the ground with a somber expression. Had she been focus on her surroundings she would've heard someone calling out to her.

"Wait up Hinata. Hey Hinata, hold on a second." When there was no verbal response the person did the next best thing and that was grabbing her shoulder. That proved to be a mistake as Hinata on reflex spun around and delivered a a palm thrust to the person's chest. The blow had such force behind it that it caused the person to be knocked off their feet.

"Damn. That was a good shot Hinata." remarked Naruto. He was still sitting on the ground, rubbing the spot that Hinata struck him. "Remind me to never get on your bad side."

While Naruto was laughing off what happen, Hinata looked as though she couldn't believe what she had done. "Oh, I'm sorry Naruto. I didn't mean it."

"I know that you didn't partly to blame for it happening since I snuch up on you." Those words along with a fox like smile from him helped put his friend at ease. "Do you mind if I accompany you home?" Naruto got his answer when she gave a bashful nod.

Both of them walked in silence, enjoying the simple comfort of one another's company. Only after walking two blocks did one of them to speak up. "So, you're not going to be at school the day after tomorrow?" The question that Naruto asked came as such a surprise that his friend didn't know how to respond.

"Yes I am." Hinata finally answered. "My entire family has something to attend to." From her tone it was clear that whatever her family was going to do she didn't want to talk about it. "How did you know that I was going to miss school? I haven't told anyone about it?"

"Because isn't that the day of the anniversary of your mother's passing?" questioned Naruto in an impassive tone of voice. After taking a few steps Naruto realized that he was walking alone. Looking back he saw that Hinata as standing there, not moving an inch. "I mean, you and your family usually go visit her grave this time of year. If I happen to overstep my boundary I'm sorry. Just thought that you might like someone to confide in is all."

Turning his head back around Naruto said nothing more, thinking that maybe he said too much. He didn't even look when he heard footsteps coming his way. Expecting to get another palm thrust like earlier, Naruto was somewhat taken back when a hand landed on his shoulder. "Thank you Naruto. I appreciate what you said." You could tell that what Hinata was saying was the truth. "It's good to know that I have a friend like you. I know that this subject might be a sensitive one for you to talk about."

This time it was Hinata who thought that she might've said the wrong thing as she remembered her friend's situation. "You mean about my parents passing away?" wondered the blonde fox boy. "It's okay. They died when I was a baby. I don't even remember what they look like and I only have pictures to give me a general idea." _"Especially since I found out that they were murdered and the ones responsible are still out there somewhere."_ "Just remember that even if the ones that we love are gone it doesn't mean that they're not looking over us now." Those words seem to sit well with Hinata as she gave him a nice smile which he returned.

For the rest of the walk the two talked about a variety of things. Nothing serious was being discuss, just simple things that two friends would talk about. They were so absorbed in their conversation that they didn't realize that they had reached their destination. Standing in front of the Hyuga compound were two members of the branch family.

Both men gave Hinata a polite bow which she returned. Despite the problems that were within the Hyuga family the branch members never showed any hostility toward young Hyuga girl as she was one of the few from the main family who treated them as equal. Though there was no issues with Hinata the same couldn't be said for her friend as both of them gave Naruto a not so pleasant looks. Naruto, like his friend had nothing against the branch family members with the exception of a few. Apparently it had to do with the entire Hyuga having something against his family. Whatever that reason was he didn't know as Jiraiya would never tell him.

"Well, this is where I take my leave." spoke Naruto in a humorous tone that had Hinata laughing slightly. "I'll see you later and remember what I said." After getting a nod of understanding, Naruto left but not before giving the two branch members a mocking box.

Laughing at her friend's antics, Hinata headed inside. Whatever good feelings she had moments ago would vanish when she went in and was face to face with her younger sister. "Hello Hanabi. How was your day?"

"It was well." replied Hanabi in an emotionless tone. Her tone wasn't the only thing that was emotionless as the younger of the two girls had a face that lacked any type of emotion. "You're coming home later than usual sister. Is there a reason for it?"

Though she didn't try to show it, Hinata notice that it was slightly difficult for Hanabi to call her sister. It truly was a shame to see how far a part they were even though they lived with one another. "No, there's no reason. I just got held up a bit, is all."

"Does this 'held back' have anything to do with Uzumaki?" Here sister's silence was all the answering that Hanabi needed. "Why do you insist on being associated with that person? You're far better off without him in your life."

Whether it was Hanabi's words or them being combined with being fed up with her constant harshness, Hinata finally decided to stood up to her sister. "That's where you're wrong. Naruto's a good friend who doesn't treat me differently because who my family is. He also cares about what I feel and doesn't make me feel like trash." Once she was done with her little outburst Hinata began to worry what would happen because of what was said.

For a while there wasn't any kind of response from the younger Hyuga sibling. In fact, the expression on Hanabi's face didn't change for an instant. Turning around the young girl started to leave but stopped a moment to say a few parting words. "You better get freshen up before dinner. Also, you should watch what you say. We wouldn't want father to hear you say such things." Not waiting for a reply, Hanabi left and didn't notice that Hinata was looking at her sister with a look that was between being hurt and confuse.

-/-/-/-/-

Two Days Later…

As Hinata told Naruto, the Hyuga family was at the Konoha cemetery. The reason being there was to pay their respects to one of the people who were put to rest there. That person was Hitomi Hyuga, wife of Hiashi and mother of Hinata and Hanabi.

It wasn't just the family deceased Hitomi immediate family that was present. There was some branch members that were scattered about the area for safety precautions. When they arrived both Hiashi and Hanabi knelt down at the foot of the grave for a silent prayer. As for Hinata, she went over and placed the flowers that she brought with her on the grave. _"It may not be much but it's all I can get for you mother."_ With that thought she joined her father and sister by doing a prayer for their family member.

Unbeknownst to those there, an unknown person snuck into the cemetery and was getting closer to the three unexpected Hyugas. "Quit hiding and show yourself." demanded Hiashi while he still had his eyes closed. Doing as requested the person stepped out into the open. Now in the open they were able to get a clear view of the person. Unfortunately it didn't help much as the interloper was dressed completely in a black outfit that concealed any identifiable features with the exception of his light blue hair that went reach to his neck.

"Well, isn't this a shame." exclaimed the unknown person who by the sound of the voice was identified as a man. "I went to all this work to ambush you and you had to ruin it. Oh well, might as well do what I came here for." Slowly the man started to walk over to the m. "Hand over the girls to me."

When hearing that Hiashi moved himself in front of his daughters. "You obviously don't know what you've gotten yourself into." Almost seemingly acting on unspoken orders, the branch members that were there to keep watch came out and placed themselves in-between the man and the three Hyugas. "Perhaps you should've done a better job at knowing about your opposition before you try such a thing."

Now with the odds appearing even more against him, the unknown man was momentarily thinking twice about wha the cam eto do. That would change though as he reached for something that was attached to his belt. Nothing looked spectacular about them as they appeared to be simply black balls. He would then throw them to the ground and when they hit it caused a dense gray cloud to consume the area.

Despite the move making seeing anything impossible, none of the Hyugas thought anything about it. They believed that they would solve the problem by simply using their Byakugan to see though the dense smoke. However, when they activated the family bloodline a tremendous pain shot through the heads of all of them. It was so painful that it caused most of the Hyugas to collapse to the floor in absolute pain.

"W-Wh-What did you d-do?" questioned Hiashi with clench teeth as the pain that he was experiencing was tremendous.

"It was just a gas that affects the nervures system of anyone who breathes it. Of course I made sure to be immune to it." He showed how true his words were by taking a few deep breaths. "There was also another thing that makes my gas more unique. I designed it so that if you were to use your Byakugan it would send an intense pain throughout your body."

The man would then walk over to the two girls who were unable to move and placed them underneath each of his arms. "Now that I have what I came for I'll be taking my leave. Farewell."

With that the unknown man departed with his prizes with him. Not wishing to simply look on and do nothing, Hiashi tried to get back to his feet. By sheer determination he managed to do so and even took a few steps before collapsing.

_"Hinata…Hanabi…Please remain safe."_ Hiashi practically pleaded as the pain became too much for him to bear as he was rendered unconscious.

* * *

A surprising chapter wasn't it? It's somewhat short but I decided that it was a good idea to end it where I did. Now the two following chapters will be the searching and rescuing of Hinata and Hanabi. As for the one who kidnapped them, I'll give you a hint if you haven't already figured it out. It's a character that isn't from any of the filler arcs that were done in the anime. 

Well, I'll say again that I hope you enjoyed the chapter and please leave a review. Even if it's to give me a somewhat harsh review it'll at least help to show that you took the time to check the chapter/story out. It's probably been said in other people's stories but it's reviews that help the writer to continue with their stories and strive to do better.

That of course doesn't mean that I desperate to get reviews. All I mean is that it's encouraging to get feedback (more than the usual 'good chapter' statement) from those who have been reading my stories. Anyways, until next time, see ya.


	6. Search

Hey there readers. I hope that all of you had a good Thanksgiving. It's been a while so I've decided to put up the next chapter to my story and the second part of this three part arc. I'm glad that all of those who have reviewed the last chapter gave good guesses on the identity of the person that kidnapped Hinata and Hanabi.

Well, in this chapter it'll be revealed who the kidnapper is and it's likely that some of you will be surprise by who it is. That's pretty much is it, so on with the chapter and of course, I don't own the Naruto series.

* * *

Chapter 6:  
Search

"What?! Hinata has been kidnapped?" It was lunchtime at school and Naruto was told about what happen to one of his friends.

"Yeah, that's what I heard." confirmed Choji in between bites of food. Apparently yesterday some guy appeared and took down everyone before leaving with Hinata and her sister."

"Are you sure about this?" asked Naruto. "I mean, wouldn't the village have numerous search parties to find them? The Hyugas are after all one of the well known families of Konoha."

"I'm sure it is." Choji corroborated. He was taking the conversation seriously as he wasn't taking bites of his food during the discussion. "Shikamaru told me about it and you know how good he is at getting information." For his part Naruto simply agreed since there was no denying that their friend was the best when it came to gathering information. "As for why this isn't being more widely known is because they don't want to cause any panic."

"More likely the Hyugas don't want it to be known that they were beaten by one man quite easily. They wouldn't want to appear as 'weak' would they?" Choji couldn't argue since it was well known that the Hyugas prided themselves when it came to being untouchable. "Is _anything_ being down about this?"

"Oh, sure there is. There are members of the Inuzuka and Aburame families that are helping with the search. In fact, both Shkamaru and his father are helping as well. That's why he's not here right now."

Suddenly the sound of flesh making contact with something was heard. The source was Naruto smashing his fist against a tree. There was enough force behind the blow that there was a sizeable dent in the tree. Fortunately for Naruto his hand was already healing since it got seriously busted open. _"Not to self, don't ever get on his bad side."_ thought Choji as he saw the damage that his friend did.

"I hate this." stated Naruto. The anger and stress in his voice was clearly detected. "Not being able to do something to help our friend. It makes me feel useless."

"I feel the same way. But what can we do? We're just a couple of teenagers."

"_Maybe you're right about that Choji. But I won't know unless I try."_

-/-/-/-/-

"What do you think you're doing here Uzumaki?" It was later that day and as soon as he was able to Naruto headed for the cemetery where the kidnappings took place. He wasn't the only one there as Choji mentioned earlier there were other people around the place.

There were some Inuzukas who were having their dogs sniffing around, hoping to catch the scent of the unknown man. The Aburames were pretty much doing the same thing as their bugs were trying to catch a trace of the man's chakra scent. Unfortunately, neither of them were having very much success. Though most of those who were there simply ignored the blonde there was one who wouldn't do so.

"What are you doing here Uzumaki?" repeated Neji. He had been following Naruto ever since he showed up. Since then Neji continually asked why he was there in the first place. "Why are you here?"

"Get off my back Neji." Naruto retorted. Clearly he wasn't in the mood to argue. Too bad the young Hyuga boy didn't take notice of the subtle warning that was behind his words.

"You better tell me why you came here Uzumaki or I'll make you tell me." Moments later he was slammed against the wall as Naruto grabbed him by the collar.

"Now you listen to me you arrogant prick. Let's get things straight here. Your family isn't that fond of me and honestly the feeling is mutual." Calming himself he let go of Neji. "Believe me, if it was anyone but Hinata I would stay out of it. However, it does and I'll be damned if I stand back and do nothing. So either you tell me what happen or you can stay out of my way. The choice is yours."

It was basically a stand off between the two as they waited to see who would back down first. That person would turn out to be Neji as he decided to concede to the boy's choices. "There's nothing to really say. We were taken by surprise and couldn't do anything because the person used a strange gas that proved quite affective on us. When the gas finally wore off the man hand already vanish with Hinata and Hanabi. That's everything."

"So basically you became overconfident when seeing he was alone and before you could realize your mistake it was too late." remarked Naruto. No argument came which he took as him not being that far from the truth. "Have you any idea who's responsible?"

"No we don't." That response didn't come from the Hyuga boy but from one Shikamaru Nara who had decided to join in the discussion. "Despite the combination of the Inuzuka dogs and the Aburame's insects there hasn't been any leads about who's behind this. Apparently whoever this guy is he knows how to cover his tracks."

"Who cares who he is." spoke an angry Naruto. All of these dead ends were starting to get to him. "What we should concern ourselves about is finding out what he has plan for Hinata and Hanabi. Is it for ransom or something more?"

That was a good question actually but there was no answer that could be given. "If it he did it for ransom then he did a foolish move by taking Hinata." establish Neji with an emotionless voice. "He would've been smarter if he only taken the younger sibling."

Once again the anger rose inside of Naruto and was ready to vent it out on the one responsible for the responsible for it. Before he could do so though, he was held back by Shikamaru putting a hand in front of him. "You actually believe what you're saying?" The question didn't come from the blonde but from Shikamaru who was managing to control his anger than his friend, just barely. "Do you hate her that much or is it because of your issues with the main Hyuga family?"

"His answer came when Neji simply glaring at the two. "I think it's time for the two of you to leave. Your services are not required here." Without waiting for a response he turned around and started to walk away.

"Now, wasn't that a pleasant conversation?" Naruto sarcastically stated. "Thanks for stopping me by the way. It wouldn't be smart to start a fight here. All it would've done was cause more problems."

"It's no problem." Shikamaru casually replied. "Besides, it would've been troublesome if you two fought one another." In response his friend merely laughed as he rubbed the back of his head. "Even if you did beat Sasuke the chances of the same happening with Neji is unlikely. By the way, how were you able to beat him anyway? There's no way that you could've won."

"What can I say? Perhaps the training that I've been doing is starting to pay off. That and maybe I got lucky." Though he hated to lie, Naruto knew that he couldn't have Shikamaru to become suspicious. Due to how good his friend was at figuring things out he had to be careful with what he said. "But right now we should focus on we know about the situation before us."

Thankfully that appeared to get Shikamaru thinking elsewhere as he returned to the matter at hand. "From what is already known we've discovered that the person has practically covered his entire existence from the area. To be able to do such a thing would mean that he knows how the abilities of those in Konoha work. That would mean that…"

"That he's someone who lives in the village."

-/-/-/-/-

"Let us out of here this instant!" In an undisclosed area there was an outraged individual. That individual was the kidnapped Hinata Hyuga. Ever since being taken she had continually shouted for her to be let go and despite having her hands and feet bound she banged against the door to escape. So far all of her attempts ended in failure. "You could help you know."

Who she was referring to was the only other person in the room with her. That person was Hinata's younger sister, Hanabi. Since being confide in their current holding cell the younger Hyuga had done nothing to get away. All she had done was sit there and watch as her sister continued with her attempts. "That's not going to work." Hanabi calmly established. "There's nothing we can do. We can't use the gentle fist to breakout with our hands bound like they are. It would be wise to do nothing and wait for help to arrive."

For a moment it looked as though Hinata was going to agree with her sister's suggestion but thought better of it. "We can't do that." she insisted. "We don't even know that anyone knows that we're here. Instead of waiting for others to something we should do it ourselves. That's what I learned from a friend."

"Your friend isn't here and is unable to do anything to help." Nothing more was said between the two sisters but silently Hinata was disagreeing with what was said.

-/-/-/-/-

"_When the human isn't able to do the job, send in the demon to pick up the slack."_ In the late hours of the night, when there was no one around an individual appeared. The person was none other than Naruto Uzumaki but was going by the name Fox as he was in his demon form. The reason why he was there in his other form was because he figured that he might get lucky and find a clue that may have been overlooked.

Examining the area closely he couldn't find anything. _"I guess it doesn't matter if it's human or demon. The trail is just nonexistent."_ Just as Fox was going to call it quits he happened to catch the scent of something familiar. _"Then again I could be mistaken."_ At first it was quite difficult to pinpoint it as there were so many scents from all the different people that had been there recently. Fortunately he found the one that he was looking for. Though it was faint he still managed to catch the scent that belonged to Hianta.

Once getting a lock on it Fox followed the scent where it led him to the rundown and broken part of Konoha. Becoming more cautious of his surroundings he carefully maneuvered through the area. Soon the scent reached its end in front of a building that judging by its appearance was on the verge of collapsing. Know that going through the front wouldn't be a wise move; he picked the next best thing and was entering through one of the windows.

Being as quiet as possible he entered the building and watched where he stopped as to prevent any unwanted noise to be made. Slowly Fox went to the door that led to a room where his friend's scent ended. Opening the door he peered in to see who he was looking for. Tied up within the room were the two Hyuga sisters.

"Finally, I found you." Walking over Fox was going to untie them so they could escape. As he went over he noticed that Hinata was frantically shaking her head. It seemed like she was trying to tell him something but was unable to do so as her mouth had been gagged. "Don't worry. I'm here to rescue you. So just relax and we'll be out of here shortly."

Reaching over he started to untie Hinata's gag. As soon as it was loose enough, she immediately spat the gag out of her mouth. "Get out of here. It's a trap."

Sooner after those words were said, Fox got the feeling that someone was neaking up behind him. Reacting quickly he rolled to the side just as a sword came crashing down where he once stood. The one responsible was clearly the one who committed the kidnapping. He wore a completely black outfit but it left his head in the open to be identified. Once getting a good look at his face Fox knew who the kidnapper was.

"I know you. You're Mizuki Touji. You're one of the school's instructors." Fox's only confirmation to his discovery was the man giving a small nod. "Why are you doing this? Is it for money? If so then I must say that the pay for instructors is worse than I thought."

That got a chuckle out of Mizuki. "Money you say? That's a pitiful reason to why I'm doing this. Don't you realize how valuable a Hyuga is? Or be more specific, their eyes?"

"You're of course referring to their bloodline, the Byakugan?" establish Fox. As he talked he made sure that he stood between Mizuki and the Hyuga sisters. "Why would you risk yourself to do such a thing? Obviously no one in Konoha would actually be a part of such a plan." For a while there wasn't a word said as neither one knew what to say next. That would soon change however. "That is unless it has nothing to do with Konoha. Who are you working for?"

"I guess you're not as dumb as you look." taunted Mizuki that was intended to mock the person before him. "Let's just say that my client is very wanting of what those girls have and willing to pay a large sum to have it." Slowly he reached into one of his pockets and pulled out a small black ball. "As for our conversation, I think it's time we end it."

Mizuki followed those words by smashing the ball to the ground. Much like with what happened with the Hyugas at the cemetery, a cloud of smoke developed the entire room. The smoke would soon fade away and when it did it was then that Fox realize that something was different. At the doorway Mizuki still stood but underneath each of his arms were both of the Hyuga girls. By how they were laying motionless in his arms it could be determined that they were unconscious.

"If you think that a little smoke bomb is going to stop me then you're sorely mistaken." Stepping forward Fox was prepared to put an end to the entire conflict. However, after only taking a step a strange feeling came over him. Unable to support himself anymore he fell to the ground and when he tried to get back up he discovered that he was unable to do so as his body refuse to do what he wanted. "What the hell? What did you do to me?"

"All that I did was affected your nervures system. For a while your body won't be operating properly. Of course that could be quickly fixed if you took the antidote, which I already have. This is where we say our farewells." Turning around Mizuki started to walk off, not once looking back at Fox who wasn't unable to get up no matter how hard he tried.

When he was out of the building Mizuki put one of his captives down so he could take out something from one of his pockets. It was much similar to the smoke bomb that he used earlier except that there was a small fuse attached to it. "For being able to find me the lease that I can do is allow you to go out with a bang."

With a snap of his fingers the fuse became lit. He then tossed it into the building and after doing so he picked the girl back up. Walking off he left the scene, not even flitching when an explosion occurred within the building that Fox had been in all that time.

* * *

Now be honest. Did anyone ever guess that the kidnapper was Mizuki? I know that so of you may say that he has gray colored hair and not light blue hair, so let me clarify on that matter. I used pictures that were on some Naruto sites and from what I saw Mizuki had light bluish hair. If I was mistaken then I'm sorry. 

As for the next and final chapter of this arc, the chapter will by on sometime before Christmas. They'll be some surprises in that upcoming chapter, especially around the end of it. I won't say anymore so I won't accidentally give any kind of hint that could spoil it.

So, I hope that you enjoyed this chapter and until the next that I update, see ya.


	7. Rescue

Now, here is the third and final part of this mimi arc to my story. Consider it somewhat as a holiday present for you readers. Make sure that you read it all the way to the end. You may find the ending to be a bit of a shocker. For the disclaimer, I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Chapter 7:  
Rescue

Under the stars that shined over Konoha the night appeared to be a tranquil one. That wasn't eh case in one particular are of the village. Within the rundown area there were many buildings that were on the verge of coming down and it one particular case a building had already come down. It wouldn't be that much of an issue except that inside the wreckage was someone and there was no way to tell whether the person was alive or dead.

That question would be answered when an arm broke through the ruble. Slowly but surely Fox pulled himself free of the wreckage. However, he wasn't in good condition as his body was covered in cuts that allowed his blood to spill onto the ground below.

"_Damn. Now I know how the wicked witch felt when that house fell on her."_ Stumbling to his feet he had managed to get back on his unstable legs. _"At least it appears as though the gas has worn off and I can move my body properly again. Even though it feels like my body has been through the ringer."_ It was about that time that Fox realized that he wasn't going to be alone for much longer.

Those suspicions would prove to be accurate because soon a group of familiar people surrounded him. As to why they were familiar is because they were the same people who were in charge of investigating the scene where the Hyuga kidnapping took place. "You guys are a little late but better late than never. Tell me, how were you able to find this place? I thought that you couldn't find any leads from the scene."

"There wasn't." confirmed one of the few females in the group. She was in her mid twenties with long brown hair that was tied into a simple ponytail and had two long bangs going down the front of her face. Fox had a good idea who she was and it was when he noticed a very large dog standing close to her that his suspicions was confirmed.

"Hana Inuzuka. Said to be one of the best trackers that have come from her family in quite some time. Can't say that I'm all that surprise that you would finally find a way to find this place." Because Hana had the opportunity to ask how he knew her name, Fox spoke up again. "We should get going. If we hurry we may still be able to catch up." He started to head off but was stopped when a few of the people that showed up had blocked his path. "What are you doing? If we don't get moving we'll lose track of the kidnapper."

"Why do we have to go anywhere when the person responsible is right here?" questioned one of the men. By the looks on the faces of everyone else most of them were thinking along those same lines.

"Oh, you got to be kidding me." insisted Fox after it became clear about what they were insinuating. "You actually think that it was me that was behind the kidnapping? I take it back. You guys are a bunch of idiots." Those words didn't sit well with the people as their disapproving only grew. "Now get out of my way. I got people to rescue." Again he tried to walk off and like before he was stopped.

"The only place that you're going is with us. There are plenty of questions that you have to answer." Not saying a word two of the men grabbed each of his arms. "Do as we say and they'll be no trouble."

"So being held against my will isn't considered a common thing?" Due to not being weakened from the entire building collapsing on him it was impossible for Fox to fight all of the people there. "I have to think of something and quick before they find out who I really am. Well, if I can't get away by using force, I'll use the next best thing." Acting without warning Fox freed his left arm from his captor's grasp and drove an elbow into the man's stomach. Following it up he turned and delivered a knee into the other man's stomach.

With the opportunity to escape now presenting itself Fox took it and made a run for it. As he tried to escape he didn't have to look back as he knew that the people who were a part of rescuing the Hyuga sisters were not far behind him.

This little chase continued until Fox spotted a crowded alley way. Ducking into the alley he hid himself just before his pursuers arrived. "Spread out and search everywhere. Don't leave anything unturned." The search wouldn't last long as Fox suddenly reappeared and made a break for it once again. As before he was being chased but unlike before it came to an abrupt end as the pursued was caught again but to make sure that he wouldn't get away again there were two people grabbing each of his arms and there was someone holding down his legs.

"No more running." directed one of the men. By his tone he was quite annoyed with the unwanted chase and he wasn't the only one. "Are you going to behave now or do we have to know you out?" When there was no answer they became even more livid. "Are you just going to stay quiet or are you going to say something?"

"It looked for a moment that Fox was going to remain silent until he suddenly smiled. "Yeah, I got something to say." Shifting his eyes to the others within the group he managed to find the one that he was searching for. "Hey, Nara boy." Fox was referring to Shikamaru who was staying at the back of the group. "You know that theory that you have on who is _really_ responsible for all of this, it's more than that." Before anything else could be done Fox vanished in a puff of smoke.

"What the hell?! He's disappeared." Looking about no one could spot their target. "Spread out. He couldn't have gotten far." Again they all searched for their long haired prey but it would prove to be pointless. The reason being htat back where they previous lost sight of their target was Fox but he had turned back to Naruto.

"Thank goodness I managed to learn how to do a shadow clone before today. If I didn't I most likely wouldn't have gotten away." Naruto's moment of self gloating was cut short as a sharp pain came over him. "As for now though I need to head home and recover." While holding his most likely cracked ribs Naruto slowly made his way home.

"_In my current condition there's nothing that I can do for Hinata and her sister. Hopefully they'll be okay until I recover enough. But as long as there's a trace of there scent or Mizuki's I can find them."_ Slowly but surely Naruto headed home. As he was doing so the faint sound of a storm coming could be heard.

-/-/-/-/-

"Son of a bitch!" shouted an angry man. "How the hell did that bastard find me out?" Mizuki asked himself. "I made sure that I left nothing that could allow anyone to track me down. At least I was able to take care of him and keep my precious cargo."

Glancing over to a jointing room he saw his 'cargo'. Tied securely with rope and their mouths bound were the two Hyuga girls. "Only a little longer and the trade will take place."

-/-/-/-/-

"_Luck just isn't on my side lately."_ It was the day after the incident during his search and things haven't gotten any better. Even with his quick healing, Naruto was still feeling some slight twinges of pain from time to time. Perhaps though what really got to the blonde was that during most of last night a heavy rainstorm occurred and because of it any trace of the scents of the Hyuga sisters and Mizuki had been washed away.

All of the setbacks were starting to get to Naruto to the point that he couldn't keep his frustration in check. With a heated groan he slammed his foot into his locker. Realizing what he had done Naruto sighed as there was now a sizeable dent on the locker. _"Great. There's another thing that can be added to the list."_ The irritated blonde was so focus on his frustration that he hadn't notice that he had some company.

"What's going on here?" Standing a little away from Naruto was Sakura and by her expression she was somewhat hesitant in getting any closer. Glancing over to the damaged locker she couldn't help but be shocked. "What's with you, Naruto? You could get into serious trouble for wrecking school property."

"I'll risk it." replied Naruto calmly. "Besides, I was angry and I rather take it out on something rather than _someone_."

"Does it have anything to do with what happened to Hianta?" That simply question immediately put a hold of any type of reply from Naruto as he looked at the pink haired girl in confusion. "Come on, you don't think that I haven't heard the rumors that have been going around?" wondered Sakura to answer the blonde's unspoken question. "Something about someone surprised attacked the Hyugas and managed to escape with the daughters of Hiashi. Of course that's just a rumor. But seeing as how Hinata hasn't been seen in days and how you've been acting today, it's making me wonder if it's more than a rumor."

Caught off guard at how accurate that 'rumor' was to the truth, it took a bit for Naruto to say anything. _"Even with all the effort that has been done to keep what's been going on it still manages to be spread around by a bunch of kids. Kind of makes you want to laugh when you think about."_ "Come on Sakura, you don't actually believe such a thing, do you?" insisted Naruto in the hopes that his friend didn't connect all the dots.

"True, I haven't heard from Hinata for sometime but there can be a reasonable explanation for it. Anyway, don't you think that if there was any truth to that rumor there wouldn't have been some sort of report about it?" While Naruto was acting all calm about the situation on the outside, the same couldn't be said for what was going on in the inside as he hoped that Sakura was go along with that idea.

Thankfully the girl appeared to have accepted that line of reasoning as she lightly nodded her head. "Yeah, perhaps you're right. Both Hinata and her sister are part of one of the most recognized families in Konoha. There's no way that such a thing wouldn't be reported." Luckily Sakura didn't notice Naruto barely containing a chuckle. "Also, if such a thing were to happen the person responsible would be hunted down soon after they know who it is."

Unknown to Sakura but what she said helped Naruto to come to a realization. _"That's right. I know who it is. That means that maybe there is still a way for me to track down Mizuki."_ "Thank you, Sakura. You're a lifesaver." Acting without thinking he gave the girl a hug before heading off.

If Naruto had taken a moment to look back he would've seen that Sakura hadn't moved from the place that the two of them separated. He would also probably had notice the shade of red that came over her face.

-/-/-/-/-

"Come on. You're almost got it." What was going on was that the two captive Hyugas were at work to escape. After a few attempts that ended up as failures they were attempting their latest plan. The plan itself was quite simple.

While their captor was out doing who knows what, they were using a broken piece of wood to tear at the rope that was tied around Hinata's wrist. Finally after countless moments the ropes finally broke, freeing the older sister's hands. Soon as she was freed Hinata went to work at untying her sister's binds, all the while ignoring the cuts and scraps that she sustained from the wood digging into her wrists.

When the both of them were freed from their bindings the two of them carefully made their way out of the building. Luckily they managed to get outside without incident though the same would not be said as they were on the outside. Right there by the front of the building was their captor, Mizuki.

"What the hell are you two doing out here?!" From his tone it was clear that Mizuki was not happy to see them freed form their bindings and were now outside.

Rather then staying there the two sisters ran off into the direction of the forest. Not that far behind was Mizuki, who was not going to allow his opportunity at gaining wealth escape. Fortunately for the girls they were handling the maneuvering about the forest due to the use of their Byakugan. At the moment it appeared as though they managed to escape their captor and was going to escape without any further incident.

Their hopes of having regained their freedom went out the window when Mizuki came from the side and stood in front of the sisters which prevented them from going any further. "This is where the road ends for you two. Now go back without trouble and there won't be any problems."

For a second it seemed like the sisters were going to go along with Mizuki's request until Hinata suddenly went into action. Quickly spinning around she delivered a strong palm thrust to his sternum which had him stumble back a bit. "Hanabi get going." Hinata instructed her sister.

There wasn't any response from the younger girl as she stood there in surprise. At that time Mizuki had recovered from the blow tha the received and was coming towards them again. Positioning herself between him and her sister, Hinata took a fighting stance. "Please sister, get going and find some help. I'll hold him as long as possible."

"Are you mad?" argued Hanbi. "A Hyuga never runs away from anything." The younger of the two sisters was talking in a tone that helped to explain that she wasn't going leave anytime soon.

Though she never had any real hostility toward her sister but Hinata was becoming quite fed up with Hanabi's stubbornness. "Damn it, this isn't the time to worry about your pride. For once do as I say and not argue about it." She would follow it up with her words by going at Mizuki again.

Unlike last time she wasn't as lucky to get a quick hit in as her opponent was managing to avoid the oncoming blows. Taking a moment to glance where Hanabi was last seen, Hinata saw that she was running off. _"Thank you, sister."_

What was going on didn't go unnoticed as Mizuki saw the attempted escape. He was going to go and stop it but was stopped when his path was being blocked by Hinata. _"Blast it. I don't have time for this."_

"You're not going anywhere." exclaimed Hinata. There wasn't any sign of hesitation that was accustomed for the elder Hyuga sister but one of absolute determination. "I'm not allowing you to get anywhere near my sister." Hinata would show her seriousness by having her Byakugan reactivate. Realizing that there was no way around it; Mizuki prepared himself to fight the young girl.

-/-/-/-/-

"_There's nothing. Absolutely nothing."_ thought an irritated Fox. He was at the home of Mizuki in the hopes of finding something. It took some doing but after promising to not prank them for two months the teachers went ahead and told Naruto where the home of there fellow teacher was.

Fox didn't know what he would find when he searched through the house. It was highly doubtful that the Hyuga girls would be held inside since Mizuki was clever enough to not do such a foolish thing. At least he was hoping to at least find a clue at where they may have been kept. Regrettably after searching the entire place he couldn't find anything that was of any use to him.

"It was a long shot that I would find anything that would be useful. If only I could get some kind of lead that'll help me find them." It was then that something caught the ear of Fox. Looking over to the forest entrance he spotted Hanabi running out in a frantic pace. "Then again, I could just wait until it comes to me."

Going over he appeared in front of the girl. Right after doing so he needed to back away as to avoid the oncoming attacks that Hanabi was sending his way. "Hold on. Wait a second." The young Hyuga heard none of it as she continued her attempt to strike him down. _"All right, she leaves me with no other choice."_ Avoiding another attempted strike, Fox got behind Hanabi. Once in position he looped his left arm around the front of her neck and with his right arm he used it to pull her arm back into a hammerlock position. "Now, are you going to calm down or do I have to make you lose feeling in your arm so that you'll listen?" Fox put some added pressure to stress his point.

To his relief Hanabi conceded so he carefully released the hold that he had on her. "How did you escape from your captor? Speaking of which, where is your sister?" There was no answer as Hanabi was still uncertain of the person that was beside her and it was starting to get on Fox's nerves. "Listen here. I was the one that's trying to help you from before so you can trust me. Now tell me what happen."

Finally the young Hyuga trusted him enough to tell him everything that happened. After getting all of the information Fox knew what had to be done. "Okay. You go find someone and get the authorities. I'll go help your sister." Before any argument could be made, the demon container headed towards the direction that the girl came from.

-/-/-/-/-

"Bothersome little brat." spat an angry Mizuki. The cause of his anger was Hinata Hyuga who was preventing him from going after her sister. He was unable to take care of her like before because he didn't have any of his gas bombs to immobilize her. That and with her Byakugan being activated it was practically impossible for him to get a decent hit in. "Do you realize how much trouble you have cost me?"

Avoiding another one of Mizuki's attempted strikes, Hinata countered it with one of her own. Though it was merely a glancing blow it had an affect as there was a burst of chakra behind it. "If it was to help my sister to get away I would do it all over again. Now it's time to pay you back for what you've done to the two of us."

What she meant by that was further explained as Hinata went on the attack. As they went at each other again something was noticed by Mizuki. Even though Hinata was on the offense against him she couldn't get a direct hit. _"I'm fortunate. She apparently isn't as skilled with the gentle fist style as other Hyugas. If she was I wouldn't be standing right now."_ That didn't mean that the girl's blows that he had received weren't having any affect on him.

Though Hinata's blows were mostly just glancing shots they still did a bit of damage to Mizuki's body. Being unable to deliver a finishing blow along with not being able to recover from the pass few days were proving to be a factor as she was becoming exhausted. Those things added with the fact that Hinata was also continually using her Byakugan was quickly draining was energy she had left.

As soon as she stopped with her attempts and let the Byakugan go away, Mizuki retaliated. With a strong back handed blow he sent Hinata back a couple feet where she collapsed onto her hands and knees. "I may have lost your sister. But as long as I have you I can still get a large sum from those in the Cloud country. He went over to deliver a knockout blow but was interrupted before he could.

"It would be wise of you to step away from the young lady." Standing at the pathway that Hanabi had use to escape was Fox. "If you do not, you'll regret it."

"It's you again." muttered Mizuki in surprise. "How did you survive from last time?" I was certain that you were inside that building when it came down."

"What can I say? I'm just full of surprises." Fox replied somewhat casually. That changed as a serious expression came over his face. "Now I say again. Back away from Hinata Hyga before you regret it."

From the look that was on the young man's face, Mizuki knew that he was telling the truth. Taking a step back he tried to think of a way to get pass the one obstacle that was in front of him. He then remembered that the Hyuga was close by. "Do you think that it is wise to say such threats? Especially since things are in my favor." He went to prove those words by slowly making his way toward Hinata who had yet to recover enough to get to her feet.

That threat didn't sit well with Fox as his expression became even more intense. "Usually I would ask you again to do what I say but with a more serious threat behind it. However, you've really pissed me off that I'll just skip it and get to the part where I beat you within an inch of your life." With nothing left to say, Fox started to walk toward Mizuki with the full intent to back up his words.

Understanding what would become of him if he didn't do something, Mizuki started to become desperate. "Stay where you are. You wouldn't want something bad to happen to the girl would you?" Despite that Fox continued to get closer. "Don't you even care what happens to the Hyuga girl?"

Strangely a small smile came across Fox face. "What are you talking about again?"

"I'm talking about the girl over there." Pointing over to where Hinata was supposed to be, Mizuki was shocked to see that she was no longer there.

"Could you be referring to her?" wondered Fox but something was off. His voice didn't come from him but from behind him. Peering over his shoulder Mizuki saw something that shocked him. Right behind him was another Fox who had the exhausted Hinata in his arms. "What's wrong? Thinking that you're seeing double?"

"How about seeing things in three?" Again the voice of Fox was heard. However, it didn't come from the two that were on either end of Mizuki. It came from the one that was coming from the bushes.

Looking around on all sides there was a Fox blocking Mizuki from going anywhere and all three of them were seemingly ready to fight. "What's going on here? Who are you?"

"To be honest, I'm not sure." answered Fox that appeared first. "As for what's going on. Let's just say that you're about to get what's coming to you." Acting on a wordless command, two of the three Foxes attacked Mizuki. They made quick work of him as the attempted kidnapper now was on the ground and unconscious.

"That was easier than expected." boasted the second Fox. "Of course there was no way that he could handle the amazing Fox, times two." The two would go back and forth with the teasing remarks until they joined with the third member of their party who was letting Hinata to get back to her feet.

"W-What's going on?" asked Hinata who was clearly confused about what transpired. "How are there three of you here?"

"It's just a trick that I managed to learn." informed the Fox that had her in his arms. Suddenly, the two look a likes that had done the fighting vanished in a puff of smoke. "As you can see it can become quite useful. But what about you, Ms. Hyuga? Are you okay?" Hinata answered by nodding her head. She was somewhat floored about what happened. "That's good. I would feel bad that you gotten hurt."

Thankfully it appeared that Hinata was slowly starting to come to grips with what had been going on. Before anything else could happen, a group of people showed up and surrounded them. "Ah, so you guys finally showed up. Those tracking skills of yours really need to be worked on." Indeed the people who came were the group that was in charge of finding the Hyuga sisters. "Or was Hanabi able to get a hold of you guys?"

"Yes she did." confirmed one of the Aburame men that was there. "She informed us of what transpired. Care to explain how you came across this place?" Everyone there were listening as they too wanted to here that answer.

"It was nothing really. I was just at the right place at the right time. Basically I got lucky." When hearing that answer there were some who couldn't help but groan at how simple the response was. "Now that I've done what I came to do, I'll be on my way." Trading a quick goodbye with Hinata, Fox took his leave. What he didn't notice was that amongst the group there was one that had been watching him very intently.

-/-/-/-/-

"You can't believe how glad I am to see that you're all right." exclaimed Naruto. It had been a few days since the whole kidnapping was put to rest and things have returned to normal. Currently the blonde was hanging out with his friends and that included the recently rescued Hinata.

"Trust me, I'm happy to be back." establish Hinata who was happy to be okay after the incident. "Fortunately I was rescued before anything bad happen and that no one else got hurt."

"Everyone that is except for Mizuki that is." muttered Choji. That got a laugh from them all since what they heard about the attempted kidnapper was that after being captured he had been interrogated. If that wasn't bad enough, the one in charge of it was Ibiki Morino who was known for his intense methods of interrogating.

"It's a shame though that no one will ever know about it." spoke Shikamaru in a lazy voice. What he meant was that the whole incident from start to finish was being deemed nonexistent. Basically the whole thing was being treated as though it never happen. Only those that were closely connected with the situation knew what had taken place. "The whole thing was just troublesome."

"Who cares what it was." countered Naruto. "In the end the bad guy was beaten and both Hinata and her sister are okay. In fact, this calls for a little celebration. Let's get some ramen. The first bowl is on me." Hearing that offer got an immediate reaction from Choji as he practically ran off in the direction of the Ichiraku Ramen stand.

Naruto was about to follow his friend when he suddenly stopped. "Hinata, why don't you and Choji go on ahead? There's something that I need to discuss with Shikamaru." Accepting the suggestion the two friends headed off. It wasn't until they were out of sight that Naruto spoke up again. "All right Shikamaru. You can let me go now."

What the blonde was talking about was that he was rooted in his place due to his friend's shadow hold on him. To Naruto's relief, Shikamaru retracted his shadow from his. "Sorry about that. I had to make sure that you didn't try to run off when I ask you something."

By the tone that his friend was using, Naruto instantly began to become suspicious. "Now what question could that be that would make me do such a thing?"

"The question on how you and Fox are one and the same." You could've heard a pin drop as there was a complete silence between the two of them. Naruto thought about running off for a second but thought twice about it since Shikamaru would stop him with another shadow hold.

"That's absurd. What would make you think of such a thing?" wondered the blonde hoping to get his friend to think otherwise. _"Let it go. Please let it go."_ His silent plea would go on death's ears however.

"One being that when Fox explained how he found Hinata he jokingly said 'that it was just luck'. You said the same thing when I asked how you were able to beat Sasuke."

"That's it? That's what made you think of such a crazy thing?" Though Naruto was joking about it on the outside he was a bundle of nerves on the inside.

"There's that and when we encountered him after the building collapsed he said something very interesting." If possible, Shikamaru became even more serious. "Fox looked directly at me and told me that the theory that I had was more than a theory. The strange thing is that I never told anybody about my theory. No one that is expect for…you. Care to explain how he knew such thing is possible?"

Knowing that there was no way that he could deny it any longer, Naruto conceded. "Well, now that you know about this, what are you planning on doing with this information? Reveal it to everybody?" The waiting for an answer was killing Naruto as he wondered what the response would be. Also, he didn't know how to react if the response was the one that he didn't want to hear.

"No I won't." Shikamaru's answer was a surprise since truthfully Naruto thought that he would get a completely different response. "I may not know why you decided to keep quiet about such a thing. But it's your decision." That got a sigh of relief from the blonde haired demon vessel. "However, you can at least tell me how this all happen."

There was hesitation as Naruto wondered if he should tell his friend everything. Finally he came up with a decision. "Fine, I'll tell you everything. Maybe you knowing will prove useful in the long run. But that's for another time. For now let's catch up with Hinata and Choji before they start to become suspicious." As they went to rejoin their friends, Naruto didn't know what the future could hold for him but instead of backing down from it he would face it down.

* * *

I hope that you readers like the ending that I did for this arc as well for the chapter in general. I decided to have Shikamaru dsicover Naruto's secret because I thought that it would be a good thing for him to have a friend that he could talk about it that was his own age. 

Another thing that you may have notice was that this was the first time that Naruto use the shadow clone jutsu. That move is going to be quite useful for him but there'll be difference to how he uses it in the series. Mainly he won't be able to create so many and not even have a sweat. Gradually when he gets stronger he'll be able to create more shadow clones but it'll be some time before he's able to create a many clones at one time.

Now, as for the direction of this story, I'll be doing a few more original chapters then shifting to how the series went but with my own modifications of course. I'll get more into that later on. That's pretty much it, so until I update this story again, see ya.


	8. Misleading

Hello everyone. I hope that you all had a good christmas/new years. With a new year here I though that I would start it off right by putting up a new chapter on So, without any further delay, enjoy this chapter and of course, I don't Naruto.

* * *

Chapter 8:  
Misleading

It looked like a beautiful and tranquil day in the village of Konoha as its citizens were walking down the streets going through their days. In one particular area that was the open market there were people were either selling or buying a variety of things.

Everything looked to be going smoothly except that unknown to everyone there was a kid that couldn't be identified because of a white hooded jacket that covered there face was running down the sidewalks and maneuvering around the people who were in the way. The reason for the running became apparent as not too far behind were a group of older looking kids chasing after the person.

Coming to a realization that the pursuers were gaining, the kid choose to run into an alley which would prove to be a mistake as he ran to a dead end. Recognizing his mistake he turned around to get out but that didn't come to pass as right at the entrance of the alley were the people who were chasing after him. Bit by bit they got closer and with every step that they took the kid would take a step back. This continued until the kid's back was up against the wall.

"There's no place for you to run or hide." establish one of the pursuers. "Don't try anything foolish and you may get out of this without only a few injuries." With them only a few steps away from their prey it looked as though they were about to succeed in whatever they had plan but the strangest thing started to happen.

The person that was being chased started to shake and as that was happening, the pursuers walked over caution. Within a matter of moments there was only one person that remained standing in the alley. That person was the pursued. As for the ones who were doing the pursuing, all of them were on the ground and unconscious. After apparently recovering his senses he saw what was laid before and once seeing this, the kid ran out of the alley before anyone could link them to what had taken place.

-/-/-/-/-

"This is Konoha Station News' reporter, Genma Shiranui with our leading story. Fox. That name has cause major commotion since two weeks ago when a strange long haired young man who could've just been in their teens arrived and help prevent a radical group that had our Hokage hostage from retrieving a valuable scroll. Literally nothing is known about this person except that he has shown extraordinary abilities such as being stab in the back without slowing down as well as having incredible speed and strength that no regular person would have.

"Since his first appearance there have been several sightings of Fox as he has assisted in preventing numerous misdeeds from occurring as well as saving countless people from seemingly life threatening situations. Now here are some recorded statements from some of Konoha's citizens about this state of affairs of the arrival of this unknown young man."

Switching over to the previous recordings, the news station went to a middle aged woman. "I may not know who that person is but I think that he's a great person. He saved me from getting mugged a few days ago and didn't asked for anything in return. I wish that there were more people like him around."

The woman would then be replaced by a man that judging by his attire was in some type of construction. "What do I think about this Fox guy? I think he's nothing more than some freak. In my opinion we'd be better off if he never showed himself around again."

The third recording would be of two high school girls. "He's just the coolest guy I've ever seen." cooed one of the girls.

"And don't forget handsome." added her friend. "With that tight black outfit clinging onto that body of his, I wouldn't mind grabbing him and-" Before she could finish, the recording was cut off and was put back on Genma Shiranui.

"As you probably can tell the responses to the arrival of Fox has been a mix bag as no one really knows anything about him and before any questions could be ask he takes off without a trace. So far there is no clue on where he goes and whether he has any connections. He has become such a popular subject that there have been reports of other media outlets that have placed rewards for any information about this mysterious young man but as of yet there has been no one who has been able to collect on these rewards. Nevertheless, the question that you may want to ask yourself is this Fox person a hero or just some vigilante? For Konoha Station news, this has been Genma Shiranui."

That was basically the same thing that had been on every other media outlet as the sudden appearance of a super powered person was big news. However, there were some that were getting fed up with the constant talk with the particular subject.

"This is getting out a hand." exclaimed a long white haired man that went under the name of Jiraiya, the guardian of Naruto, who was in fact the man known as Fox. _"I hoped that after revealing more about his family's past it would help to keep it hidden and not have it broadcast for the whole world to know about._" Sensing an impending headache surfacing he sat himself down.

"_Even though no one knows who Fox really is it doesn't make things any easier."_ Glancing over to the coffee table he spotted a newspaper and it was opened to a page that had a small graph of the results from one hundred people on what they thought of Fox. Thirty percent thought he was some kind of new hero while the other seventy percent thought he was nothing more than a thug and a vigilante.

"_Despite a small margin, the people think he's just as bad as the people who he has fought against. Speaking of which, where is that idiot of my anyways? He's going to be late for school if he doesn't hurry." _Getting up he headed for his charge's room and saw that Naruto was not there. "I guess he decided to do a patrol before going to school. He's been doing that a lot lately. Hopefully he doesn't burn himself out by constantly doing this."

-/-/-/-/-

Unseen by those in the village there was a black blur hopping from rooftop to rooftop. On closer inspection that blur was none other than Naruto in his half demon form, Fox. _"It looks as though things are running smoothly which is fine by me."_ Just as he was about to look for a secluded spot for him to transform, something caught his eye. In a nearby alley there was a group of people gathered around. But what really got his focus what that within that group were a few paramedics.

Getting on top of the rooftop nearest to the area he was able to see some young kids being stretcher into an ambulance. Naruto's interest peeked even more but he realized that it would only draw suspicion and possibly the people that were there would think that he had something to do with whatever happen. Besides, it looked like the kids were in good hands of the medics. It was then that he notice the time that was on his watch.

"_Oh man, I didn't know it was that late."_ When realizing what the time was Naruto immediately sprinted off. _"I have to move it if I want to make it on time."_ Finding the first secluded spot he could find he went in and a few minutes later came out only this time as Naruto and was wearing his usual outfit. Running off in the direction that was heading off originally he moved as hast as his feet would take him. _"If I don't move it I'll be late for school again and that's something I can't afford to do."_

It took sometime but eventually the high school was rebuilt enough so the students could get back to their schooling but there were still parts of it that were being fixed. Along with the repairs there was other things that were being installed. One of those things were surveillance cameras in the hopes that it'll help to prevent anymore attacks from happening.

Fortunately luck seemed to be on Naruto's side as he managed to arrive at school and with time to spare. "Thank goodness, I made it. Thankfully I was able to make it without having to transform." As he headed in he spotted someone. "Hey Sakura, wait up."

Moving a little faster he managed to catch up with the girl. To the blonde's relief Sakura was recovering quite well from the injury that she had sustained. She no longer needed the use of crutches to get around but she still had her left leg wrapped up to help prevent her from aggravate any further.

"Good morning Naruto. It's good to see that you're not late for class…for once." When Naruto finally caught up to her the two headed inside. "Aren't you usually with friends before school starts?"

"Ordinarily I would but I guess they decided to leave me behind seeing as how I'm getting later than usual." If anything good came from the day that the school was attacked was that it helped to form in a way the starting friendship between Naruto and Sakura. Maybe it was because he risked himself to lead those creatures away when they had her confined in the classroom but Sakura started to treat Naruto better. Whatever the reason was the blonde had to admit that he preferred the friendly Sakura than the one who enjoyed pounding him the ground.

"I must say that I feel sorry for those friends of yours Naruto. Having to deal with your constant blunders must be an irritating thing to deal with." Despite the verbal jab that she set in his way, Naruto could tell that Sakura was mostly joking around. "I don't know how they handle it."

"Ha, ha. That was hilarious. But it doesn't come much as a surprise. After all, this is just one of the things that make me who I am." Letting out a chuckle how true those words were, Naruto continued his walk to class. "Besides, I thought that the two of us were friends. So wouldn't that mean I'm 'irritating' you as well?" When there wasn't any kind of response he glanced to his side and saw his companion wasn't there anymore. Looking over his shoulder he saw that she was behind him and was seemingly rooted where she stood. "What's wrong?"

"We're friends?" Sakura's question was said so softly that it was a bit hard to hear. By the way that she said those words it appeared as though she never considered that idea until then.

"Well, we talk to one another without it mostly turning into a shouting match, we occasionally hangout and you haven't tried to beat me to a pulp in quite sometime." listed Naruto casually. "So yeah, I consider us as friends. Is there a problem with thinking that?"

"Not really. I just never thought of us as actually friends. Though, I can't really say that it's a bad thing." Soon, the young girl started to laugh. "This is definitely an unexpected event. Who would've thought that the two of us would ever consider one another as friends?"

Realizing now what his friend laughing about Naruto soon joined her with a laugh of his own. "Certainly I wasn't. Especially after being on the receiving end of you and Ino's repeated pummeling because I expressed my opinion about a certain Uchiha boy." Already he could see that Sakura was about to express her own opinion on the matter so he cut her off. "Before you go ahead and bite my head let's just agree to disagree okay? We have separate unions when it comes to this matter and leave it at that."

To his relief the pink haired girl silently agreed to his request. Shortly there after the bell rang, signaling that classes were about to begin. After saying some parting words the two went their separate ways to get to class. For most of the day Naruto didn't even paid attention to what was going on in class. All that he was doing was allow himself in deep thought about what he was going to do since his demon transformed self, known as Fox, had become known to the public.

Fortunately there had been not that much of a problem. That was unless you didn't include the fact that he had to be cautious of someone such as an ANBU member secretly watching him as he transform to his original form. Another thing was that there were now people trying to get news exclusive about him.

To his relief none of those attempts had proved to be successful but were quickly becoming quite annoying. There were times that Naruto just wanted to go ahead and explain who he was to a certain extent so that it would finally be out of the way. However, he restrained from doing so as he wasn't sure how such things would be received from those in the village. Even now he wasn't sure how the public really felt about him as he chose avoid watching reports about him on TV.

As if to help Naruto resolve the issues that came with those thoughts, the voice of his teacher caught his attention. The teacher was in his mid to late twenties with black eyes and brown hair that was tied in a high bushy ponytail. But the thing that anyone would most likely to notice when you first saw him was the horizontal scare that he had from cheek to cheek that went across his nose. He was Iruka Umino, the teacher for history as well as current events and the class that he was teaching was the later of the two.

"Okay class. Today's topic is going to be about something that is somewhat local. I believe you all know what it is going to be about." There was very few who didn't know what Iruka was referring to and Naruto had a sinking feeling on what it was. "Of course I'm referring to this new person known as Fox." Unheard by anyone was the blonde quietly moaning in misfortune. "We already heard what the media has said about him but for today's class let's hear what you students think about the situation."

No one said anything for a while as none of the students knew how to start things up. "I think he's such a dreamboat." exclaimed a girl from out of the blue. Soon after that statement the majority of the girls in the classroom started to share their opinions on the looks of Fox.

As the girls continued their chatter, the guys tried their best to make a rebuttal but it was obvious that the majority of them were starting to get jealous by the apparent attention that this new person was getting from the female persuasion of the school. While the conversation continued, Naruto just placed his head in his hands as he felt completely embarrassed as unbeknownst to any of the students that they were technically referring to him.

Feeling that the topic of the discussion was getting a little out of hand, Iruka decided to put things back on track. "I think some of you were mistaken by what I meant. What I meant was how you felt about what he has been doing since he has shown up."

"He's a freak." spoke one student. "It's just unnatural for someone like him to be around. Being able to do what he has done since showing is impossible. Come on, I can't be the only one who thinks this way." What was said was apparently not felt by just that boy since there were mummers throughout the class that were sharing his opinion.

"Well, I think he's a blessing." retorted someone Naruto already knew without having to look up who it was. Yet it came somewhat of a surprise that it would be Hinata speak up against the negative words that was being said. "I know from experience that this Fox person is a good person. He saved me two times without asking for any kind of reward for doing so."

That confused those within the class for more than one reason. The first one being that they were surprise that the quiet Hyuga girl was actually speaking up. The other was that they could only recall of one time that Fox was involved in anything that was connected with a Hyuga. That was of course when the creatures ran a menace and held the Hyuga family hostage. As for the second incident it was when Mizuki had kidnapped both Hinata and Hanabi to those within the Cloud village. But that incident was being kept hidden from the public eye.

"Are you sure that you're not saying this because you may have a crush on him, Hinata?" questioned a student. When hearing that question, Naruto thought that Hinata's answer would obviously be no. But when he didn't hear the response lifted his head from his hands to see what could be the reason for the delay. From his seat, he saw that despite her best in trying to hide it he thought he could see that she was slightly flustered. "O-Of course not. Why would you say such a t-thing?"

"Ha, ha. Isn't that rich." teased Kiba who was laughing in the back of the class. "And I thought that you had a thing for blondes." That little joke got its desired outcome as it resulted in the other students to burst with laughter and causing Hinata to blush even more so. She wasn't the only one as Naruto was also blushing as he got the subtle hinting that was behind that joke.

Before anymore could be said, the bell ran, signaling that class was over. No sooner did it ring all of the students hurried to their next class and Naruto was no exception as he exited the class in confusion. _"I must be thinking too much into it. So what if Hinata was blushing? She was embarrassed. It's not like she has a crush on Fox or me for that matter." _Soon lunchtime came and Naruto was heading over to where he and his friends were going to were they usually ate.

"Hey Naruto, hold up." When hearing that the blonde turned his and saw that the person who called out his name was one of his friends, Shikamaru. Waiting until he caught up to him the two resumed their walk. "Did you hear what happen in town?"

"No. I haven't." answered Naruto as he had no clue at what the shadow user was getting at. That is until he suddenly recalled something from earlier. "Does this have anything to do with some people who were found unconscious in an alley and were taken away by ambulance?" Getting a nod of confirmation he continued. "Yeah, I was there when they were being taken away. What about it? I figure that it was just some people who got beaten in a fight and simply left there. What's so significant about it?"

"Maybe it's significant because it may have something to do with a monster." That got the immediate attention from the demon container. "From what I heard those people were chasing after something into the alley. When they thought that they had the advantage they tried to capture their target. But apparently it didn't go according to plan seeing as how they winded up unconscious and their target escaped without being spotted "

"Let me guess, you want me to the scene of the incident and see if I can somehow pick up the trail of the target that had escape." Naruto deduced as he already knew what the response was going to be.

"Well, you may be able to catch a trace of whatever was responsible for what happen and stop it before anything else can happen." answered Shikamaru with the same amount of seriousness. "After all, don't your demon abilities come in handy in situations such as these?"

Naruto was about to make a comment but stop when he notice that they were close to their designated meeting place and that Hinata and Choji were already there. "Even though you know my secret I would prefer that you didn't talk about it within the hearing distance of others." he whispered with a stern voice that indicated that he wasn't joking about. "Wouldn't want any unwanted people to accidentally hear something that they shouldn't." Shikamaru got the message as he nodded his head. "As for your suggestion, I think I'll take your suggestion." That was all of the conversation as the two of them joined with their friends and started talking as if it was simply another day.

-/-/-/-/-

Just as he told Shikamaru earlier, Naruto went to examine the alley that those people were found unconscious. In what looked like a simple task of investigating the area for any clues proved to be more difficult that once thought due to the fact that there were officers stationed to make sure that the scene wasn't be tempered with. Fortunately the ones that were standing guard weren't all that skilled since Naruto, now as Fox managed to enter the alley from one of the nearby rooftops.

At first glance there wasn't really anything to take note of. _"I guess the authorities took all the probably evidence that they could be found. That means that it won't give me much to go with." _Lifting his head up Fox gave the area a few sniffs. _"There are too many different scents here that I can hardly distinguish one from the other."_

Figuring that there wasn't nothing for him to get from the place Fox was about to leave when he spotted something close to the dumpster. Walking over he examined he saw that it was blood. Dabbing some of it on his finger he sniffed it. _"I think I just found myself a little help. I may not know who exactly where this blood came from but it does tell me that this person isn't your ordinary person. Most likely it came from the person who was being chased. Too bad it doesn't tell me who it is." _Having found all that he could find, Daisuke hurried out of there before anyone was the wiser.

-/-/-/-/-

"Damn it. Today turned out to be a waste." Even though he was getting confused stares from bystanders, Naruto continued to let his frustration to be shown. For the past couple of hours he had searched throughout the entire city of Konoha in the hopes of finding the person that the blood he found had belong to. Unfortunately, the day was coming to an end and his search turned out empty handed. "Hopefully tomorrow will turn better than today was."

While he walking he bumped into someone. "Oh, sorry about that, I didn't see you coming." Despite his apology the person continued to run off. Taking a closer look Naruto saw that the person was just some girl with light black hair and matching eyes who appeared to be slightly younger than him. Another thing that Naruto took notice that she had medical bandages wrapped around her forehead with some of it going down the bridge of her nose before turning so that it went under her left eye and there was some additional wrapping around her neck.

"_That's sure a lot of medical wrap that she has on and those are the ones that I can see."_ thought Naruto as he looked the girl over. _"There's no telling if she has anymore on her body."_ "Hey, are you all right?" The say anything as she ran off again. _"Well, wasn't that rude. I was merely concerned about her well being and she's not polite enough to say anything."_ As Naruto was about to forget about it and head home, he suddenly caught a whiff of something familiar. _"I know that scent. It's the same as the one that I got from the blood I found."_ It suddenly clicked on where the scent came from. _"Damn it. I better catch up to that kid before he gets too far."_

Naruto would hurried in the direction were the girl ran off and after sometime he managed to catch up with her in an empty parking lot. "Hold on a second. I'm not going to hurt you; I just want to ask you something, that's all." Thankfully the girl was apparently was doing as he asked. "I was wondering if you happen to be in any alleys recently."

When she heard that question, the girl immediately became edgy. This didn't go unnoticed by Naruto. "N-No. Why would you ask?" The girl's response only further Naruto's curiosity.

"Just curious is all. You know with what happened earlier today you have to wonder what the cause for something like that to happen. Do you have any idea for it?"

Feeling that the blonde knew more than he was letting on, the girl considered that it was time to leave. "Excuse me but I need to be going now." Not wanting his only actual lead to get away, Naruto grabbed the girl's arm, which proved to be a mistake as her free arm came around and struck him in the chest. Being caught off guard, Naruto didn't brace himself for the blow and also because he figured the she wouldn't have enough power to do any real damage.

That would proved to be a mistake as the blow struck with enough force that it sent him back a few feet before collapsing to the ground. Realizing what she just did, the girl turned to leave but stopped when someone spoke up. "Wait. Please hold on a second." Turning around she was shocked to see Naruto getting slowly back to his feet.

"H-How are you still up? No one has gotten back up after being struck like that, let alone stay awake." The girl couldn't understand how this was possible.

"What can I say? I'm different, just like you." Becoming even more freaked about what was going on, the girl started to back away before making a mad dash away. "Hold on. I don't mean any harm." Naruto's words went on deaf ears as the she continued to run off. He tried to run after her but his legs gave out on him. _"I guess that hit took more out of me than I thought."_

Straining to get back to his feet he started to walk in the direction that kid had run off to. _"I need to get moving if I want to catch up to her. Perhaps I'm the only one that can help her deal with what she's going through. Although, it won't matter if I don't find her."_ Shaking off the pain that he was feeling Naruto went after the girl, which proved harder than it was the first time.

Luckily he was able to find her again, only this time it lead him to a somewhat rundown area of the village where a two story warehouse type building that seemed to haven't been used in quite sometime. Another thing about the warehouse was that one end of it was built over the edge of the riverbank that was close by.

"_I guess this was an old finishing complex that went out of business sometime ago. Not a bad place to hide out if you think about it."_ Looking around, Naruto was considering if he should become Fox but thought otherwise since it he were to meet up with that girl again it'd probably would freak her out even more than she already appeared to be.

Being careful he entered the warehouse and so far hadn't dealt with any trouble. _"Maybe I was wrong. Perhaps she did come here but must've left already."_ As Naruto considered this, he suddenly heard something coming his way. Turning his head he saw a barrage of small needle projectiles flying straight towards him. Moving quickly he barely avoided becoming a human pincushion.

When it appeared as though nothing else was going to happen, Naruto gaze over to where the needles hit he saw that a few of them became embedded into one of the support beams. _"Senbon needles? Not all that damaging when only a few are use but came become very dangerous if used correctly or attacking with a lot of them at once."_ "Quite impressive here." Naruto stated openly so that it could be heard quite clearly. "Knocking me down then having this little trap when I got here. I must admit that it was smart thinking."

Somewhere within the warehouse Naruto could hear someone walking about in the shadows. This didn't go unnoticed but pretended that he hadn't heard anything. "You don't have to be worried about me. I didn't come here to cause you any problems. All I want to do is talk, nothing more." There wasn't any answer and for a moment Naruto wondered if the girl already took off. That thought went out of the window when he heard the sound of footsteps. Turning to where the sound was coming from he saw that it was indeed the girl that he had been chasing.

"What do you want?" asked the girl. Although she was trying to sound calm she was obviously cautious about what was going on.

"I want to talk about what happen in the alley earlier today." The mentioning of that incident instantly put the girl on alert. "Mind telling me what your name is?"

"It's Isaribi."

"That's a nice name." Naruto mentioned int eh hopes that it would somewhat put her more at ease with him. "My name is Naruto. Listen, Isaribi. I don't think that you didn't mean to really harm those people. All you were doing was defending yourself correct?" A hesitant nod of the head confirmed his suspicions. "All right now. Why don't you start from the beginning and tell me what happen?"

The doubt that Isaribi had with him was still there as she didn't know whether or not to tell him anything. In the end she accepted the request. "I was running from a group of guys. They were ordered to capture me to return me to their boss. He's the one that I've been running from."

"So why would he want you so badly? No offense meant but you don't seem like someone that would send hired thugs to go after."

From her expression it was hard to tell whether Isaribi appreciated or was offended by that comment. "The reason would be this?" Lifting her long sleeves of her shirt up it was revealed that she had more wrapping on her entire right forearm. Slowly she started to remove the wrapping where it fell to the ground. It was then that Naruto notice that there was some kind of green markings in the area that the bandages covered. Once Isaribi was done she took a few deep breaths and then suddenly she underwent a transformation.

Where ever the wrapping a green scaly skin appeared. A similar type of change went through various other parts of her body, specifically the outline of her face. Other things that changed about her were that both of her hands develop webbed between the fingers and a fin of some sort appeared at the back of her head.

"Okay. I can see the reason now." accepted Naruto. "Is this natural or was the person who's after you did this to you?"

"His name is Amachi." Isaribi answered as she changed back. "He's a doctor who researchers in the splicing of genetic material to create something new. Another thing is that he doesn't care about crossing any moral boundaries to his work. Using people as guinea pig is an example."

"And how do you figure in to this whole thing?"

"I was his assistant. I had no idea what he was doing. That was until he decided to fuse me with the genetics of a fish. The reason for it is because he wanted to see that it was possibly to do such a thing so he could then create a squad of people like me for his master. Whoever that is I don't know."

"Let me guess what happened next." interrupted Naruto. "You managed to escape and since then you've been on the run. Is that pretty much it?"

"That's more or a less what happen." Isaribi confirmed. "For the last two weeks I've been running for my life." Reaching into one of her pockets she pulled out a roll of more medical bandages. She would then use it to rewrap parts of her body that were previously bandaged. "This wasn't something that I wished to happen. All I want is to is find a way to return back to normal. But with this constant avoiding I'm started to lose hope."

"Don't be so quick to lose hope." insisted Naruto. "All that needs to be done is defeat this Amachi guy and try to find a way to return you to normal. That doesn't sound so hard." By the way that Isaribi was giving Naruto it was clear that she thought that he was not all that bright. "Oh, come on. I can help you against them. Besides, the best defense is a good offense. Also, aren't you fed up with constantly running?"

"Of course I am!" Isaribi immediately answered with anger in her voice. "I practically feel like an animal that's being hunted." Slowly the anger that Isaribi was speaking with faded away and was replaced by one of sorrow. "All I want my life to be like it was before this whole thing started. That's all I ask."

"Listen. Stay here and don't go anywhere. I'm going to talk somebody that might help. Does that sound good?" The girl merely nodded her head in agreement. "Good. I'll be back in a couple of hours so sit tight." Naruto was headed for the exit but stopped when the girl called out to him.

"Why are you doing this? What are you getting out from helping me?" Naruto didn't answer and for a second Isaribi thought that she wouldn't be getting answer.

"The answer isn'tall that notable." the blonde finally answered. Looking over his shoulder, Naruto gave her a genuine smile. "Let's just say that I know how it feels to be different." Before any kind of question could be asked he took his leave.

-/-/-/-/-

"Okay. Could you repeat that again?" asked a somewhat perplexed Jiraiya.

"What's there to say?" Naruto responded. He was even looking over to the older white haired man as he was gathering the supplies that he would probably need. "I've told you everything. Now, do you know anything about this Amachi guy or what? After all, isn't gathering information one of your fortes? Not counting peeping on woman of course."

Ignoring that little jab at him, Jiraiya went ahead and answered the boy's question. "Not including what you already told me, not much. However, I have of rumors of someone setting shop for themselves in a rundown medical facility across town. Whether this guy is the same one that you're looking for is unknown."

"It's a start at least. I'll meet up with Isaribi and see if the information is valid or not." The blonde headed for the door but was stopped when Jiraiya called out to him.

"Why are you set on helping this girl Naruto? If you get yourself involved you may end up paying for it? Why would you risk yourself at all?"

"Maybe I'm doing it because it's the right thing to do." Naruto answered with conviction in his voice. "In a way she's just like me. She didn't asked for what happened to her and wants nothing more than to have her life return to what it once was. I can relate to wanting such a thing." He was obviously referring to how his life changed after learning about what resided within him. "When I agreed to use my abilities while I am Fox it was situations such as this and for the life of me I can't just stand back while someone is in need." Much like with what he did with Isaribi earlier, Naruto took his leave without waiting for a reply.

If he had looked back though he would've seen that Jiraiya was actually smiling _"It's amazing. He's just like you were when you were that age, Minato. Perhaps he'll turn out to be like you when he gets older. Hopefully he'll come out of whatever troubles comes his way safely."_

-/-/-/-/-/-

"Isaribi, I'm back." When there was no response from the girl Naruto carefully made his way inside of the warehouse. "Hey, it's me. I think I got some information that may help us. So come out of hiding so we can talk about it." Again there wasn't any reply. _"This isn't good." _Quickly he investigated the rest of the warehouse and couldn't find Isaribi anywhere. _"Damn it. I can't tell what could've happen here. But that doesn't mean that I don't have a way to find out."_

Soon after those words were said, Naruto had become his other self known as Fox. Not wasting anytime he examined the area again. But this time he wasn't looking for anything suspicious. Instead, he was using his heighten sense of smell to pick up any unusual scents. _"Besides, Isaribi there are several other scents that I don't recognize. They're pretty fresh too. That's strange seeing as how this place has been abandoned for quite some time and I don't think that Isaribi would be so welcoming for other any unexpected guests."_ It didn't n genius to recognize what had happen.

"_Amachi's goons must've discovered where Isaribi was hiding and captured her while I was gone."_ Having no reason to stay there any longer he hurried off as fast as his feet would take him. _"Hopefully that old man's information gathering is correct. Something tells me that I don't have much time to waste."_

-/-/-/-/-

"Damn you. Let me go." In an undisclosed location Isaribi was frantically trying to free herself from the bindings that kept her fixed onto the examination table. As she continued with her struggle, she sent heated glares towards the only other person that was in the room.

"I'm afraid that I can't do that." replied the man. He had to be around in his thirties with long light gray hair that was tied in a simple ponytail and beady little eyes. What he was wearing an off-white lab coat that was unbuttoned that revealed that there was a zipped up dark gray work suit and matching pants. "You see, you're too valuable to simply let you go. Also, I care about your well being and don't want you to suffer more than you already have."

"Don't give me that bullshit, Amachi. You could care less about my well being. All you care about is to use me as a lab rat for your insane experiments." The smile that came across Amachi's face practically proved that the bound girl's words were not that far from the truth. "Just wait until I get out of here. I'm going to-"

"Going to do what?" Amachi intervened. "If you haven't already realized it you are in custody and there's no way that you're going to get away again." Not willing to accept the man's words, Isaribi tried even harder to free herself. "Face it. You're all alone and there's no way for you to escape." Slowly the girl's struggling came to an end as looked as she was starting to agree with those words.

"_He's right. I'm alone."_ thought Isaribi. _"There's no one that knows that I'm here. No one will actually miss me when I'm gone. "There's isn't anyone who'll try to help me."_

"I wouldn't be so quick to say that." exclaimed someone. Looking around neither Isaribi nor Amachi could find the person who the voice belonged to. They would discover who the person was as stepping out from behind from behind one of the big pillars was Fox. "After all, there's someone who's here to save her from a bastard like you. Now, there's two ways that we can do this. One, you can let the girl go and let us leave without incident. Two, we still leave but it includes you having to have an extensive stay in the hospital. The choice is yours."

Not liking how the situation was not in his favor, Amachi hurried over to the door. "Get in here. There's an intruder." Mere moments after that was said, a group of muscular thugs rushed in and surrounded Fox. "Take care of him and show no mercy."

Those orders didn't seem to bother the hired thugs as they grinned as they started to get closer to their target. Even with this unexpected predicament Fox didn't seem all that upset. "Are you guys really going to go through with this for whatever money that your boss is paying you?" He got his answer as they continued to come closer. "Apparently you don't know who you're fucking with. Perhaps a demonstration is in order."

In a flash the thugs went on the attack. Figuring that with the numbers on their side victory was certain. That wasn't the case however as one by they were being taken down by Fox until there was only one remained. "Typically I would give you a chance to surrender but I've already given you the chance and you didn't take it." With the advantage no longer on their side, the sole remaining thug was starting to become worried about what was before him. "Let's end this because I have something more important to do."

Being referred to as nothing more than a stepping stone didn't sit well with the thug as he rushed in to prove that line of thought wrong. It would prove all for not as the demon container avoided the attempted swipe at his head and countered it with a fist to the gut. With his opposition doubled over Fox took advantage of the opening by wrapping his left arm around the thug's head and draped his arm over his own head. Once doing that Fox lifted the thug in the air until he was virtually upside-down. He would keep him up in the air for a few seconds before falling back and in the process driving his opponent in the ground. (Basically Fox did a wresting move known as a suplex. Watch the fight scene that Blade had with the thugs near the end of the movie Blade II).

Now there was nothing standing in the way between him and the reason for him being there. Turning his sights over to where he thought they were and saw something that momentarily caught Fox by surprise. Right before his eyes was Amachi using Isaribi as a shield by placing before him and kept her in place by having one of his arms wrapped securely around the girl's waist while he used his free hand by placing a scalpel to the side of her neck.

"Come any closer and the walls will be covered with this girl's blood." The disturbed doctor was trying to sound confident but with his voice shaky slightly proved that he was becoming more worried than he was before. That didn't mean that Fox was prepared to go rushing in.

"_I've got to be careful here. If I go at this the wrong way he may actually go through with his threat and he's become desperate enough to actually go through with it."_ Taking a step forward Fox tried to turn the situation more towards his favor. "I would think twice before doing such a thing. If you were to do that there wouldn't be anything left to prevent me from beating you within an inch of your life or maybe I'll get a little carried away and go beyond that inch. Do you get what I'm saying?" If Fox's threats weren't bad enough he was saying them in a dark tone that was making Amachi even more scared than he already was.

That seemed to be the final straw for the doctor as he valued his life more than his hostage he threw Isaribi forward and made a dash for the door in the hopes of escaping. Those hopes would go unfulfilled as Fox managed to appear in his way to prevent his escape. "Going somewhere?" He allowed his guard to drop slightly which would be a mistake as Amachi used his scalpel by throwing it at his opposition. Thankfully for fast reflexes Fox managed to avoid the desperate attack but not completely unscathed as a few locks of his hair were cut off. "Bad move."

What followed next was Fox beating the living crap out of the doctor and continued to do so until Amachi was slumped against the ground. He was severely beaten but alive, barely. Now there was nothing left to go up against, he went over to Isaribi who was crawling away as she had no idea what was going on. "Hey, it's all right. I came here to help."

"W-Why would you do such a thing?"

A smile slowly came over Fox's face. "I told you already. I know how it feels to be different."

That one comment seemed to spark a memory to come to Isaribi. When it finally came to where she heard such words a look of shock came over the girl. "N-Naruto?"

"Yes it is." he answered in a low voice to prevent the possibility of any of the semiconscious people hearing something that they shouldn't. "Listen. I'll explain later. For now though we should really get out of here before we get any unexpected guests." Not arguing in the slightest the two of them hurried out before any unwanted surprises could occur.

-/-/-/-/-

"I can't believe it." exclaimed Isaribi for the countless time. Immediately after leaving Amachi demented laboratory they went to the apartment that Naruto and Jiraiya live at. It was there that the girl was told about what was the deal with the blonde. Of course they didn't say the entire truth. Mostly what she was told was that he had an ability that recently showed itself. "I don't know how I can thank you."

"Don't worry about it." established Naruto casually. "I told you that I was going to help you and that's what I did. Besides, it's somewhat become a common thing for me lately. Though I don't know how we'll reverse what they did to you. Something like this isn't my specialty."

"Maybe I know of a way." informed Jiraiya. Until then he had mostly kept quiet as he felt that he was in no position to talk. "I know of someone who's an old friend of mine. She's an expert medical specialist and is considered one of the best. She may be able to find a way to cure you."

"Then it's settled. We'll go see this lady tomorrow and have her help Isaribi."

"It's not that simple kid. She doesn't live anywhere around here. Also, it'll be wise if it was only me who took the girl." Naruto was about to argue against it but stopped when the older man continued. "It'll be hard enough to get her to help and it wouldn't help if you came and made the situation worse. Anyways, it probably would be a good idea for you stay behind and watch over the village. Who knows what may happen during the time that we're gone."

Jiraiya did make some good points but it didn't mean that the blonde liked them. "It's all right Naruto." spoke Isaribi. "I'm okay with going with the man. He seems trustworthy and he can't be all that bad if he's associated with you." That remark resulted in different reactions from the two males. Jiraiya started to laugh nervously while getting a judgmental stare from Naruto. Fortunately neither one said anything so not to concern the girl.

"Fine. I guess I have to give in." Naruto reluctantly accepted. "Just don't nothing _unnecessary_ old man." Though the warning was a simple one Jiraiya got an understanding. "Then I guess this'll be goodbye Isaribi."

'Whatever happens I want you to know that I'm grateful for all that you did for me." acknowledged Isaribi. "I don't even want to image what Amachi was planning on doing to me."

"Don't worry about him. I believe that we've seen the last of Amachi."

-/-/-/-/-

"So, what do you got to report?"

"It's as you predicted." reported one of the thugs that was beaten by Fox earlier. "Shortly after rescuing the girl the unidentified person they headed for an unknown location. So far we haven't be able to find them. What do you propose that we do about it Amachi? Do you wish for us to recapture Isaribi?"

Indeed the person was the doctor, Amachi. Currently his condition was stable even though most of his body was wrapped in bandages to the point that he nearly resembled a mummy. "No. Let her go. We got all that we needed from her and it would be pointless of getting her back. What I want you and your men to do is find everything that you can get about this unknown individual who came here. Use every resource that you have to do so."

Once getting his orders the man left to relay them to his men. "Whoever that person is, he has proven to be a very interesting individual. He's someone that I would like to get to know better." Slowly a sinister smile came over Amachi's face. As he thought about those possible things he was grasping the hair of Fox in his right hand.

* * *

An interesting chapter wouldn't you say? If you seen/read the anime filler episodes you probably recognize the names of Isaribi and Amachi. They were two of the characters that were involved in the filler arc that somewhat touched on Anko's past. 

Why I decided to use them is because I felt that it would be a good way to do a chapter like this without it really involving any of the more centered characters. Hopefully you understand what I meant by that. That of course doesn't mean that they won't be mentioned or possibly be seen again.

As for the part at the end of the chapter, that'll lead to something that'll be later in the story. Can't really say anything without possibly spoiling it. So, until next time, see ya and I hope you enjoyed reading this chapter.


	9. Mission

Now readers, here's the next chapter to this series. By the title you could probably tell a bit of what this chapter is about. You may find it interesting to see what I actually do about it. No longer wanting to waste anymore of your time, I'll allow you to read the chapter and of course, for the disclaimer, I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Chapter 9:  
Mission

"What do you mean that I have to go on a mission?"

"It means just as it sounds Naruto." informed Kakashi in a half interested voice. His lack of interest would be further proven as instead of looking at the blonde he was reading an orange book. Naruto recognized the literature as it was the perverted series that Jiraiya was known to write. Finally taking a break from what he was reading, Kakashi turned his complete attention to the teenager standing before him.

"You're one of the few students who haven't completed the necessary about of missions. That's why you and the others are going to partake in one." What the masked shinobi meant was that people who were the blonde's age had to participate in missions that were to help them in learning to work with one another and to better help them in using their skills.

The missions ranged from a simple thing of delivering something somewhere within the village to protecting an important person from danger. There were the ones that dealt with assassinations but they were usually given to the more experience shinobi such as jonin. What went along with doing missions was that could help a person get a higher ranking and the money that came from doing a mission wasn't that bad either.

"So what if I haven't done that many missions?" retorted Naruto with a bit of irritation in his voice. "I've been busy with other things." Those other things were of course him patrolling as Fox and training privately.

"Be that as it may you're going on this one." Suddenly there was a knock at the door. "Ah, apparently your partners have arrived. Come in."

Entering the room were three people that got a dual reaction from Naruto as he knew them but the way he knew them were different. "Now isn't this a surprise? Maybe this won't be so bad after all. What are you guys doing here?" That question was directed to two of the three who showed up who were Lee and TenTen. "Don't you usually work with Neji? From what I heard he already did the mandatory amount of missions needed to be performed."

"That's true." confirmed TenTen who didn't seem all that glad about the situation. "But he did most of them with other members of the Hyuga family and even by himself. Apparently his name carries a lot of leeway, branch member or not." A little scolf could he heard from the blonde as there was no secret about how Naruto felt about the Hyuga boy.

"Let us do well on this mission, Naruto." exclaimed Lee. Unlike the other male he seemed to be eager to do the mission from the start. Despite themselves both Naruto and TenTen had to grin at their friend's enthusiasm.

"Oh please, tell me that this is a joke?" questioned the third person that showed up. The person didn't appear to be all that happy to be there what's so ever. "Why is he here?"

"It's nice to see you too, Ino." muttered Naruto. Indeed the third person that appeared was Ino Yamanaka and much like her he wasn't as glad at what was to come. "Just when I thought that this mission wouldn't be so bad this has to happen." That snide remark got a quick reaction from the girl. She probably would've tried to hit him if it wasn't for Kakashi speaking up again.

"That's enough you two." He was clearly becoming irritated with the constant interruptions. "Whether you like it or not you're both going and that's final." Reluctantly the two blondes stopped with any further bickering. "Good. Now the four of you should go get ready and be at the village gates within the hour. Your team leader will meet you there. That is all."

Getting their orders the four of them took their leave to get prepared. Just as they were told to do they were now waiting for their assigned team leader to arrive. Soon it got on the nerves of all of them since whoever it was hadn't shown up yet.

"What the hell is taking them so long?" yelled Naruto. He had become completely fed up with the waiting and was willing to express it. "Is it really that hard to show up on time? Maybe our leader is Kakashi. Let's hope not." Though nothing was said he could tell that his three other group members were somewhat agreeing with him. It was common knowledge that the one eyed instructor would be constantly late and would make lame excuses for it. "For someone who's supposed to be in charge they're certainly not setting a good example."

"Is that so?" asked someone that wasn't a part of the group that was already there. Turning around they saw an attractive woman who only seemed like a handful of years older than them. She didn't appear to be shy to flaunt her body as she was wearing a mesh net like outfit that clung to her shapely body. Her outfit also comprised of a maroon colored skirt that ended above her knees and a long tan trench coat. The young woman had purple hair that was in a messy ponytail and light brown eyes that had touch of yellow in them which also appeared to lack any pupils.

"Apparently I haven't made a good first impression." A smile would come over the woman's face but there was seemingly something behind it. Without the slightest bit of warning, a kunai being sent flying pass the left cheek of Naruto. Nothing appeared to happen but that was proven different as a cut appeared on that same cheek.

"The name's Anko Mitarashi and I'll be your team leader for this mission." The same smile that was on the now identified Anko was on her face once again as she retrieved her kunai. She didn't even notice the bewildered looks that were from the four teenagers who didn't know what to make of the strange woman. "We have a long way to go and not a lot of time to get there. So, let's get going." Not wanting to risk of having anything being thrown at them all of them hurried to catch up with their odd team leader.

"Um, Ms. Anko." spoke a nervous Ino. "What is our mission exactly? Kakashi didn't really tell us what it was."

"Please. Just call me Anko. Being called 'Ms.' makes me sound old and as you can see that is not the case. Anko would back those words up by posing in a way to further flaunt her body. "As for the mission, we're going to a nearby trading post that has been having trouble lately."

"What kind of trouble are we talking about?" asked TenTen.

"Not exactly sure but from the reports a group of thieves are responsible for several robberies that have been going on lately. That's where we come in as we're going there to fix that."

"Is that all?" wondered Naruto. "If that's all there is to this then we'll be done in no time." As before, Naruto's words got him in trouble as he felt a hand on the side of his face while on the other side a kunai was a kunai being pressed on the other cheek. From the corner of his eye he saw that the person was Anko. _"Damn. She's fast. I didn't even sense her sneak up behind me."_

"My, aren't you an interesting fellow." remarked Anko as she pressed her cheek against his. "Even after getting that cut to your cheek you're still cocky." It was then that she noticed that there wasn't a trace of a cut ever being there. "Oh, so it's you." How she said that didn't sit well with Naruto. "You're the boy that can heal quickly even though you're not a medical specialist. I can only imagine how much fun I can have if I were to use you for target practice."

As she did earlier, Anko instantly reappeared in front of the group after having her fun with the blonde. The five of them resumed their journey and there was nothing said as the teenagers didn't want to risk their leader focusing her attention on them. In fact, it would be their leader who would restart the conversation. "There's something else that I heard about you that I found interesting. Did you actually beat Sasuke Uchiha?"

That question helped to put an ease within the group, if only barely. Also, the question that was asked was one that Naruto was more than willing to answer. "Yeah, I did. I was even able to knock him out. Quite amazing if you ask me."

"Well no one asked you." interrupted Ino who appeared to be annoyed about the whole discussion. "You beating Sasuke had a complete fluke. There's no other way to explain it."

Stopping himself from exploding with an outburst, Naruto went ahead to dispute the girl's logic. "Maybe, just maybe I won because I was good enough. Ask TenTen and Lee if you want. I've been training with them recently and they'll tell you that I'm no slouch. Of course the same could be said about them as well." The little praise that was sent their way had the two other members of the group to become a bit bashful. That wouldn't last long however.

"Yes. What Naruto says is true." added Lee. "He has proven many times to be quite skillful. Though, his methods are sometimes out of the ordinary."

"Like you're one to talk." thought TenTen. "What my friend is trying to say is that there's more to Naruto than what's on the outside. Remembering the old saying: 'Don't always judge a book by its cover'."

For her part, Ino didn't come up with any argument which was a relief. The travel would go on and nothing of any real importance as they simple exchange casual words with one another. To be more precise, Naruto, Lee and TenTen were talking while Ino looked on in silence and Anko continued to lead the team.

-/-/-/-/-

Later that Day…

After a few hours of walking the five man group arrived at the trading post. The place was what you expected as there were plenty of stands and markets that were selling a variety of things. What was being sold went from food to elegant clothes.

"All right. I'm going to talk with the ones that are in charge." informed Anko with complete seriousness. "Maybe they know something that could be useful for our mission. Until I'm done why don't the four of you check this place out? I'll get you when it's time to get back to work." After saying that, she took her leave.

"Well, you heard the woman." said Naruto with a grin on his face. "I'm going to see what this place has to offer. Like finding if there's a stand that serves ramen." With a laugh that could be heard by all around, the blonde took off to begin his search.

"I too will take my leave." added Lee. "I'll be looking for a place to do some training." In what resembled a green blur the other male member of the team took off. Now the only ones that were left were TenTen and Ino.

"What a bunch of knuckleheads those two are." teased TenTen in good humor. Turning her sights on the only other person that was with her she made a suggestion. "Do you want to check out this place? It could be a good way to get to know one another."

Seeing that the girl had a good point and that she had nothing else to do, Ino had her answer. "Sure. Why not? It might be fun."

-/-/-/-/-

When they entered the trading post the two girls went to see what it had to offer. During that time they had managed to become quick friends. At the moment they were at a small café and were trading stories.

"You're kidding me?" asked Ino. She was laughing heavily at what she had heard from her bun haired companion. "Did that actually happen?"

"I'm not kidding." TenTen verified. Like with Ino, she was trying to contain her laughter. "One time during a training session Naruto boosted said that I couldn't hit him with any of my weapons. To prove him wrong I had him pinned to a tree and was unable to move. The look on his face afterwards was priceless."

Unable to contain it any further, the two girls started to laugh uncontrollably. "Man, what a dimwit." Ino muttered after she was able to regain her composure. "I don't know how you're able to be around such a guy, TenTen."

Calming herself down as well, TenTen became serious. "You know, Naruto isn't as bad as you're trying to make him out to be." There wasn't any harshness behind the words of the weapon user but it didn't lack any of the significance. "Sure he's not like your usual person and acts like an idiot at times. But that's only one side of him. He's kind, considerate, very funny and willing to do what he can for those he's close to."

Those words appeared to have gotten to the platinum blonde girl. She started to wonder if she may have been too harsh with her criticism of the hyperactive blonde but Ino was taken out of her thoughts when someone entered the scene.

"So, this is where the two of you have been." Not far from where the two girls was their team leader, Anko. Understanding why she was there they paid their bill and went to join the older woman. "Good. Now we just have to find Naruto and we can get to work."

"But Anko, what about Lee?" wondered TenTen. "Shouldn't we be looking for him as well?" She would get her answer as the purple haired woman pointed over to the side.

Slumped against the wall was a slightly battered Lee. From how messed up his clothes were he apparently had gotten roughed up a bit. Before any misconceptions could be made, Anko explained. "I found him about a mile in the woods. I guess I caught him by surprise as he lost his footing and bumped his head against a tree. He'll be fine in no time." As if to prove her suspicion, Lee started to stir. "Now, if only we knew where that final member of our team was and we would be all set."

It was about that time that a commotion could be heard. The source of it was that there was a group of people gathering around one of the nearby stands. Allowing their curiosity to get the better of them went to see what was going on.

Everyone was standing around a simple looking food stand as someone was gorging themselves on a bowl of ramen. That wouldn't be that big of a deal except that after finishing it they placed the bowl on top of a large tower of already emptied bowls. From what could be seen there was only twenty bowls that were piled up on either side of the person. As for the one who was responsible for the scene, no one knew who it was. No one that is, except for four certain individuals.

"Ah, that was good." proclaimed a very satisfied Naruto. He further proved it by patting his stomach. "Not as good as Ichiraku's but a very close second." Reaching into his pocket he pulled out a good sum of money which he placed on the counter. "Thanks for the meal."

"No, that you." insisted the chef who was happily holding onto the money. "You ordered more than I would usually get in a week. If you ever come around here again you'll get everything at half price."

"I'll be sure to remember that. "Getting up, Naruto took his leave. He wouldn't get far as he came face to face with his team. "Oh, hey there guys. How's it going?" There wasn't any answer as they look at him in bewilderment. "What? We were given time to do what we wanted and I choose this. Besides, I was hungry."

"Enough of this goofing off." said Anko. "We've got work to do and don't have time to waste." Becoming serious the four students followed their leader. It wasn't until they were in a thick forest area that was a few miles away from the trading post.

"From what I learned most of the incidents took place around here. Which is understandable since the area would work in their favor." Anko analyzed of the situation. "We'll split into three teams to explore the area in finding any clues. TenTen, you'll go with Lee." The two that were mentioned nodded their heads in confirmation. "Naruto, you'll be partnered with Ino." When that was said it caused an immediate response.

"Are you kidding me?" asked Ino. She clearly wasn't in favor of the pairing. "There's no way that I'm working with the likes of him."

"The feeling is mutual." Naruto retorted in a semi annoyed tone. "Let her work with TenTen and Lee. I'm okay with working by myself. She'll just slow me down." Another argument was about to occur between the two blondes but it was stopped before it could begin.

"That's enough from you two!" yelled an irritated Anko. "I'm tired of you two bitching with one another. Put whatever issues that you have with each other away and work together or so help me I'll use the two of you to sharpen my kunais." That not so idle threat seemed to do the trick as it stopped any further protesting from the two blondes. "As for me, I'll go investigate by myself. Whether you find anything or not we meet back here in two hours." With those orders being given the group split up. Everyone that is, except for the two infuriated blondes.

"Looks like we don't have any say in the matter." stated Naruto. "How about we make a deal? Until the mission is done we cooperate with one another. Does that sound good to you?"

"I'll accept the offer." agreed Ino. "Just don't get on my nerves and we should get along fine." In response, Naruto silently curse to himself. "Well, we're supposed to be checking this place out, so let's get started. "Not even waiting to hear a reply, Ino headed off in one direction and giving his fellow blonde no choice but to follow.

A half an hour had gone by and so far nothing had been found. "This is really getting annoying." exclaimed a frustrated Ino. "Shouldn't we have found something by now?"

"It's not going to be that easy." answered Naruto. "If it was that simple to find them they wouldn't need us searching for them would they?" Though he was acting calm and collective Naruto was also getting fed up in finding anything. "Maybe if we had Kiba and Akamaru here they could probably sniff them out."

"I rather not have them here. Both him and his little dog continually get on my nerves more than you and forehead girl combined."

"I guess I'll take that as a compliment." muttered the blonde male. "Now that you've mention it, there's something that I've been wondering about. What's the deal with you and Sakura? From what I remember you two were good friends when you were younger."

That question put a halt to the girl partner as she stopped in her tracks and allowed a seldom look to come over her face. "It's complicated and you wouldn't understand." Ino answered. Her voice was so low that it was hard to hear. "Besides why do you care about what's going on between me and forehead girl?"

"Because believe it or not, me and Sakura have become friends and though she doesn't talk about it I know that she's becoming fed up with the constant bickering that the two of you usually have. As for not understanding, what's not to understand? You were friends when you were younger, something happen to end that friendship and it's been like that ever since." To his relief, Naruto's words were being heard by Ino even if she wasn't saying anything.

"I have an idea why you guys stopped being friends but I won't say. I just don't get why someone would break up a friendship over something that' snot really all that important. But hey, what do I know? I'm not that smart when it comes to things such as that."

"Yeah, you're right." spoke Ino for the first time in a while. "Like you know what you're talking about. Let's just get back to why we're here all right?" Glad to see that his words hadn't affected his partner's attitude all that much, Naruto returned his attention back to the matter at hand.

"You're right, we should. We have a little over an hour before we have to go back. Who knows, we may get lucky and find something. But before that, nature calls. This'll just take a minute." Quickly, Naruto ran behind a group of trees to deal with his business in privacy. He would return shortly later and was ready. "Well, let's get going. Can't waste anymore time." That said the two blondes headed off to resume their search.

If they had stayed a bit longer they may have saw someone coming out from behind the same trees that Naruto had used earlier. _"Good, they're gone. Now I can get to work."_ Stepping into the light it was revealed that the person was Naruto or to be correct his demon self, Fox. Not wasting anymore time the demon container went in a different direction than where Ino and his double went. _"Hopefully nothing happens to my shadow clone. One good hit and it'll disappear and that'll lead to more trouble that I would rather avoid."_

Going as quickly as his demon assisted body would allow him; Fox arrived to where he wanted to be. _"This is where my nose led me. Of course, that doesn't really say anything since I don't have any previous knowledge of what the scents of those thieves' are. Here's hoping that I get lucky."_ Hiding behind a tree Fox peered from the side and spotted what he wanted to see.

In a clearing that was well hidden was a group of twelve men. Another thing that he noticed was that in various areas of the clearing were a variety of items. The items went from fine clothes to treasure. It was clear that those items weren't gotten in a legal manner. _"Bingo. I found the hideout. Now I need to get back to Ino and some how to get everyone to come around here."_ Fox was about to take his leave when a sudden sound was heard.

"Look what we got here." acknowledge one of the thieves. In the center of the clearing some of the men were bringing over by force were TenTen and Lee. Obvioiusly they must've been captured while they were searching. The first thought that came to Fox was to rush in and rescue his friends but put that thought away. Doing such a thing would only put the lives of TenTen and Lee in jeopardy. With great reluctance he left the area to meet back with the others in his team. As he left he could only hope that his friends would be okay until he returned with back up.

-/-/-/-/-

"Damn it. This isn't good." Anko statement was an understatement. Immediately after leaving the clearing, Naruto secretly did away with his clone and along with Ino met up with Anko. When it was realized that TenTen and Lee weren't coming back they had to look for them. Fortunately what could be considered as pure luck and some unnoticed provocation by Naruto they found the thieves' hideout. "Have to find a way to free those two before we do anything else."

"How you suppose we do that?" challenged Naruto. "It's three against twelve. We may be able to fight them but it'll be hard to do so if they use our friends as a barging chips. I could create two shadow clones but it won't really help us."

"You know the shadow clone jutsu?" questioned Anko. "Since when?" When the blonde didn't say anything it became clear that she wasn't going to get any answers. "Be that as it may, there is someone who can help us." It was then that the team leader turned her sights on Ino. "And she's right here."

"What are you talking about? What can I do to help?" Ino was confused as she couldn't figure out what she could do. "My combat skills are good but not enough to make a significant difference."

Her questions would only result in Anko to smile that made the two blondes uneasy. "Who said anything about your combat skills? I'm referring to the bloodline limit that the Yamanaka family is known for. The mind transfer jutsu."

"Though she did make sense it didn't completely get rid of Ino's worry. "Yeah, I can do it but only to one person at a time. How can it be useful here?"

Again that smile of Anko's showed itself. "Oh, it's useful all right. Especially since I've just came up of a plan just now."

-/-/-/-/-

"I'll ask you again. Why are you here?" The thief's question went on death ears as neither TenTen nor Lee said a word. "Do you realize the situation that you're in?"

"Of course we do." answered TenTen with complete seriousness. "You have us tied up and there's nothing that we can do about it. For the time being that is."

What was said didn't sit well with the man as he tried to even hit the girl. It would prove unsuccessful as Lee intervened. Though his arms were securely bound by the rope it didn't stop him from using his legs which he did by kicking the man in the stomach and followed it up with a knee to the face when he was doubled over.

Once that was done Lee stood in front of TenTen and was somewhat in a fighting stance. "Trying to strike a girl who is unable to defend herself? How dishonorable can you be? If you wish to fight someone I'm more than willing to oblige you." Certainly the thieves would've accepted the offer but were interrupted by one of their own speaking up.

"Look what we got here." Underneath each of the man's arms were the unconscious Naruto and Anko. To top if off the two of them had their hands and feet tied up. "I caught these two snooping around. Apparently they were with the two that we've already captured. I guess the more the merrier." With that he dropped both of them to the ground.

The discovery didn't sit well with the other thieves as it furthered the notion that something was up. 'That's it. I've had enough of this. Get rid of all of them." Not asking twice they all prepared to follow the order. However, like before they were interrupted but this time it was something that was completely unexpected.

From behind two individuals knocked two of them out. When they turned around the thieves were shocked by what they saw. Standing before them were Anko and Naruto. The confusion that they had was an understandable.

"We got you, didn't we?" taunted Naruto. "You should see the expression on your guys' faces. They're priceless."

"H-How did you- It's impossible." The confusion would be taken cared of when the attention returned to what should have been the unconscious look-alikes but not only were they awake but were free from their bindings. What happened next were the two posers becoming identical versions of Naruto. "How could you allow such a thing to happen?" The question was being directed toward the person who brought the two fakes in.

Smiling at them, the man gave them his answer. "That's because that was a part of the plan." To further explain the man closed his eyes and formed a hand seal. "Release."

A bluish glow surrounded him for a moment. When it disappeared the man collapsed to the ground in an unconscious heap. When he went down a bleach blonde girl entered the scene. "Man, I can't tell you how glad I am to be back in my own body. That guy was too grimy for my liking."

"Quit complaining Yamanaka. It was necessary for the plan to work." reminded Anko. While this was going on the two Naruto clones managed to free TenTen and Lee from their bindings. Now all of them were free and ready to fight.

"Not to sound ungrateful or anything but could someone tell me what the hell is going on?" asked a confused TenTen. She wasn't the only one as Lee wanted an explanation. "What plan are you talking about?"

"We'll talk about it later." explained Anko. "For now we need to deal with what's before us." What their leader was referring to was the thieves that were starting to surround them. "This should be fun. Fight with everything that you got but be careful. It would make me look back if one of you died."

Acting on an unspoken signal all four members of the team went into action. Though the numbers were against them as well as the probably more experience when it came to actual fighting, the four of them were handling themselves quite well. That didn't mean that they weren't having any problems as the thieves were able to strike down to of them. Gratefully those two were only the two shadow clones of Naruto that just disappeared moments later.

"That's it. I'm getting fed up with all of this." Naruto was going to try and follow those words up by making another shadow clone only to come out empty handed. _"Damn it. I forgot. I'm not able to do more than two clones at a time. I'm not able to do more than two clones at a time. It'll be a while until I can do anymore."_ As he comprehended this he failed to notice that one of the thieves sneaking up from behind. It wasn't until he heard the man being knocked down did Naruto realized what had been going on. "Uh, thanks."

"You're welcome." replied his savior, Ino. "Consider it as you owing me now. So get your head back in the game so you'll be able to return the favor." Follow her advice, Naruto reentered the fray.

After some effort all the opposition was taken cared of. "Well that's all of them. It's time to take them in." The team's confidence about the situation came a bit too soon as unnoticed by any of them was that one of the thieves was getting out of his restraints. Once he did he pulled out a dagger.

"Die!" Rushing forward he went after the closest one to him and that was Ino. Caught so off guard from what was happening the girl couldn't even move. Fortunately someone intervened before anything fatal could happen.

"Are you okay?" asked her savior. Still shocked about what happen, Ino merely nodded her head. "That's good to hear." Right before them all was the thief who had driven his dagger into the left shoulder of Naruto. He woulnd't have long to think about it as the thief was knocked out by a powerful fist from an angry Lee.

"How dishonorable you and your group are. You've got what you deserve." Knowing what the man wouldn't be getting up anytime soon, Lee went to check on his friend who just pulled out the dagger from his shoulder. He wasn't the only one as both TenTen and Ino were kneeling beside Naruto while Anko was making sure that no one else of their fallen opposition had any other hidden surprises.

"Are you okay, Naruto?" asked a concern TenTen. "Do you need any medical attention?"

"There's no need for that." informed Naruto. He was using his right hand to press on his wound to help slow down the blood lost. "It'll heal. Give it a day or two and I'll be as good as new."

"Why did you do that you idiot?" Though Ino was acting angry she too was worried about the blonde haired boy. "Did you even realize what you were doing?"

"Of course I did." said Naruto as though it was the simpliest thing in the world. "I was protecting a teammate and shockingly, a friend. Also, in a way this makes things even between us. Wouldn't you say so, Ino?"

There wasn't any response from the bleach blonde girl for a while as she allowed what was said to sink in. "I guess it does."

-/-/-/-/-

Soon after, the thieves were turned were turned into the authorities and after collecting their payment the four man team were heading back to Konoha. There weren't any serious injuries that were sustained from the fight. Of course that excluded the shoulder injury that Naruto had received which was now recovering while his arm was in a sling.

"Okay, I think it's time you tell us about this plan that you came up with back there." insisted TenTen. "You said that you'd tell me and Lee what completely happen and now is as good as any to explain."

"It was all Anko's idea." stated Ino. "After we found you guys she figured that taking control of one of the men than charging in guns a blazing. So what better way to control a person then using my families' bloodline ability, the Mind Transfer jutsu? Once that was done we just had to figure a way to create a diversion."

"And that's where I come in." Naruto continued from where the girl left off. "Instead of taking Anko and me into the clearing I created two shadow clones which I had one of them changed its appearance to Anko. Thus, when the Ino controlled thief presented the look-alikes we snuck up from behind and you know the rest."

"That's amazing." stated Lee. "You are truly incredible Naruto. Creating clones and having the will to fight even if you were exhausted is amazing."

"I wouldn't say that." Naruto was quick to oppose. "I was only one person who did his part." From the corner of his eye he saw that the anger that Ino had from Lee's comments was slowly going away. "Anyway, I'm more of fighting and leaving the thinking to others."

"A wise move on your part." commented Ino. Due to her standing behind of the blonde haired boy he didn't see the sly smile come over her face. "Don't strain yourself with something that you can't comprehend."

"Yeah, you're right." It took about a minute for Naruto to get what the bleach blonde meant by that. "Hey!" The rest of the trip would be filled with laughter as all of them knew that they did something good.

* * *

There you go. That was an interesting chapter wouldn't you say so? The reason why I've done this chapter is because for many reasons. Wanting to start the somewhat frienship between Naruto and Ino while at the same time reestablish the one that he already has with Lee and TenTen. Hopefully I did a good enough job in those parts as well as introduction of Anko into the story. 

Another thing that you may have notice is that the appearance of Fox was very limited. You've got to remember that there has to be moments that Naruto needs to handle things on his own without becoming his other self. That and he didn't want to risk the others knowing his secret is another reason.

Overall, I hoped that you liked how the chapter turned out and leave a review before you go. Until next time, see ya and continue to enjoy the story.


	10. Bounty

Well, I'm back and with a chapter. By the title you may already have a slight idea of what the chapter may be about. Hopefully you'll go ahead and give it a shot anyway. You may find it interesting. Now about the disclaimer, I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Chapter 10:  
Bounty

"Sir, those people that you requested have arrived." Waving his hand the man quickly left the room so that the person in charge was left with two people who were concealed in shadows.

"Welcome. It's a delight that you've arrived. Hopefully you're reputation doesn't precede yourself." Motioning over to a giant monitor a video of associated moments of Fox appeared. After a few moments the video stopped on a close up on the person's face. "Here is your assigned target. Don't let his appearance fool you. There's more to him than what meets the eye."

There wasn't anything said as the one behind the meeting happening allowed his two guests to talk about who was on the video. "My word, he's sure is a cutie." exclaimed one of them with an obvious female voice.

"Now isn't the time Aimi." spoke the other person who sounded male. "Pardon me for asking but why have you requested us to handle just one person?"

"Let's just say that he has gotten my attention." Pressing a button a man entered the room and was carrying a briefcase. Opening it up it was revealed that was inside was a large sum of money. "Remember, bring Fox to me and you'll get his bounty. Whether he's dead or alive does not matter."

The two guests looked at one another as they came to a decision. "You've got yourself a deal."

-/-/-/-/-

The Next Day…

"So you're living by yourself?" asked Hinata.

"For the time being." answered Naruto. Currently he was walking with his friends from school and was merely talking about a variety of things though nothing in particular. "The old man had to leave the village to attend to…personal reason." Of course the real reason that Jiraiya had to leave was because he had to take Isaribi to see his friend in the hopes that she could return the girl to normal. "He'll most likely be back about a week. No more than two."

"You do know what that means right?" questioned Choji. When all he got was stares from his friends he decided to fill in the blanks. "It gives us an opportunity to have a party."

"I don't think so." informed Naruto to the somewhat shock of those around him. "I'm all for one to have fun and all but no way are we going to have a party at my home. Last time that we tried such a thing it was at Shikamaru's house. And we remember what happen."

The recalling of that incident resulted in a groan from the Nara boy. "Don't remind me. My parents came home sooner than expected and let's just say that my mom wasn't all that pleased at what she saw. The whole situation had proven to be…troublesome."

"Oh, quit with the complaining. You had fun and anyways, nothing was damaged when it was all said and done. Besides, you were only grounded for a month." In response, Shikamaru giving Naruto an annoyed stare. "But you guys really want to you can come over and hangout for a while."

Soon it was time for the four of them to part ways. When he was alone, Naruto was once again in his Fox form, was out patrolling and so far things looked peaceful. _"Looks like another uneventful patrol." _Jumping from rooftop to rooftop Fox continued to observe all that he could see. _"I'm not complaining by any means. I just wish that there was some action."_ Suddenly, an explosion occurred at a nearby building. _"Probably I should've kept my mouth shut."_

Rushing over to where the tragedy took place in the hopes that he could lead a hand in any possible way. In no time he arrived at his destination and saw that the end result was a huge living complex being consumed in flames. Without the slightest bit of hesitation he ran through the flames in the search of any injured people. Remarkably the flames hardly fazed him.

To his misfortune there were casualties but fortunately with the exception of second degree burns there were no serious injuries. Thankfully the fire and medical departments showed up and were able to tend to the wounded and began to dowse the fire. Seeing that everything was being taken cared of Fox was about to head off until the sound of some girl screaming for help caught his attention. With all the rescue teams being preoccupied with everything else Fox stepped up and went to rescue the trapped person.

Avoiding falling debris he hurried to where the pleas where coming from and it led him to a room that was on the verge of collapsing. Frantically Fox searched everywhere that he could think of. "Hello. Is anyone in here? Say something." Continuing his search Fox hadn't found any trace of a person ever being in there.

Suddenly, whether it was his imagination or not it appeared as though the flames were beginning to act as though they had a mind of its own as it actually started to completely circle around him. _"Okay. I'm no expert but I don't think this is normal."_ The heat of the flames also began to intensify to the point that even in his Fox form it was starting to become unbearable. _"I got to do something and do it fast. Even if I can heal quickly I'll end up burning to death."_

With only a limited amount of opinions, Fox went with the only thing that he could come up with. Running out from the flames he smashed through one of the windows. Using the momentum he had he flung his entire body to the neighboring rooftop where he tumbled to a stop.

Gasping for air the demon container shakily got back to his feet. Looking back to where he escaped and what made the situation even more stranger was that the flames that almost had tried to consume him were snuffed out without any reasonable cause. _"What the hell? It was as though those flames had a mind of their own."_

Fox's train of thought would soon be broken by the sound of humming that was coming from behind him. Turning around he spotted a girl who had to be in her mid twenties. She had shoulder length strawberry blonde hair and emerald colored eyes. From his perspective it was obvious that she was a looker and what she was wearing didn't hide that fact one bit. What she had on was a white sleeveless shirt that reached down to her navel and black skin tight pants that ended just pass the knees.

"My, my, that was quite impressive. I must say that for a while I thought that you might not escape from that tiny obstacle." commented the lady as if it was nothing big. "Thankfully you prove me wrong."

"Are you telling me that you had something to do with what happened to that complex?" Fox was both shocked and angered that this seemingly innocent lady would do such a horrible thing.

"Yeah I was. Not directly but I did have a part in it. If you want to know more about what's going on you got to catch me." Going over to the rooftop edge she literally went over the edge and to Fox's shock she didn't plummet to the ground like expected, she floated there in the air. "Let's see if you're as fast as you've been reported to be." With that said the lady took off at an incredible speed.

Not allowing his only lead at what was going on to get away, Fox hurried after her, leaping from the top of every rooftop not losing his sights on his target. Despite of all his speed and agility, he could only stay a close distance from her. _"What's the deal with this person? There's no way that she can be normal. I mean, no one can float in the air like she did. Even at my best I can barely keep up with her"_

The chase would finally come to an end at a deserted part of Konoha as the woman landed to the ground and Fox stopped not that far away from her. "That was magnificent. You were actually able to keep up with me. I guess I can add being fast along with being a cutie." That lady's remarks caught Fox off guard a bit since it was something that he didn't expect to hear.

"Flattery won't get you anywhere. Now tell me what the purpose of destroying that complex was and what was your involvement with it?"

"Actually, my part in this whole thing was to lure you here so that my associates and I could properly deal with you." Before Fox could ask what that meant by that, a stream of fire came straight towards him. Acting fast he leapt out of the way, just barely avoiding the fire. However, to his shock the fire did a complete turn and headed towards him again. Not expecting something like this to happen, Fox was unprepared to come up with a counter measure and thus was only able to avoid the attack to a certain extent.

After that second attempt the stream of flames finally dispersed but the damage was done. Once landing on the ground Fox collapsed to a knee as his right leg was severely burned from the attack. "You were right Aimi. He's is a quick one."

Entering the scene was a man, close to the same age of the lady, with wild red hair that had streaks of yellow in it and crimson colored eyes. He was wearing a black t-shirt with flame designs on the bottom of it and a matching pair of black pants. On his hands were black fingerless gloves. But what really caught Fox's attention were the man's eyes as they were looking at him with a cold and spiteful stare.

"_What's with this guy? I don't know what it is but something tells me to watch out for that guy."_ In spite of the slight concern that Fox was feeling he keep a cool expression. "It seems as though it's going to be two against one, which is fine by me. Bring it on."

The expressions on the oppositions' faces were total opposites. While the man kept that same stare as before, his female companion didn't seem the less bit concern. _"Wow. The kid's a brave one. I believe I'm starting to like him even more." _

"Mind telling me before we start the names of my opponents?" pondered Fox. There was ulterior motive for him asking besides of knowing their names. It would give him time to think of a strategy.

The two figures were seemingly going to agree with his request as the girl spoke up. "The name's Kasumi and this stone face man with me is my friend, Youta." In an attempt to intimidate him, Youta had a small flame ignite on each of his fingertips. "Together we're known as the Elementals and we've been hired to deal with you."

"Oh, I see. You're bounty hunters. So here to collect whatever bounty that has been placed on my head." Going complete serious Fox went into a fighting stance. "Well, what are you waiting for? None of us are getting any younger so let's get started."

Even though he was acting all cool and calm, Fox couldn't help but be a little concerned. _"I've better keep myself focus. These two are definitely no ordinary people. They seem to have the ability to control an element. Obviously, that guy has fire ability and by the way the girl was moving she seemingly has control of the air. If I fought them one on one I could probably beat them but I don't know about going against them both at once."_

Accepting the challenge the man identified as Youta came at him with a fist. Thankfully even with a hurt left leg he managed to avoid the attempted attack. "Come on, is that all you got? If so you then you're in deep trouble."

Not taking too kindly to the taunting, Youta pounded both of his fists together but to Fox's dismay, both fists became consumed in flames. "Oh, crap." Moving as fast as his body would allow he tried to avoid the flaming fist and luckily he was managing to do that but still received a few blows.

As this went on Fox was starting to feel the effects of not only the blows but the intense heat that the flames that came with them. In a moment of desperation he grasped one of Youta's incoming fist and momentarily ignoring the pain that he was getting from the flames he was able to deliver a fist of his own.

"Note to self: don't do that again." Shaking off the pain that was going through his hand he saw that perhaps that it would be wise for him to make a temporary retreat. Taking the opportunity that was presented to him Fox tried to make his get away. However, as he tried he got struck with what appeared to be a sudden gust of air. The force of the attack was so strong that it actually caused Fox to crash against one of the building walls.

"What in the hell was that thing that hit me?" Staggering back to his feet Fox saw that the source of the attack came from Aimi. _"Damn it. I totally forgot about her. If I wasn't in my enhance durability that I have in this form I wouldn't be conscious."_ He tried to take a step but nearly collapsed due to the pain that went through his still injured left leg. _"My leg is in no condition to continue with this fight. Even with my quick healing it'll take some time for it to recover. I have to get out of here while I still have the ability to do so."_

"How pathetic." commented Youta as he stood beside Kasumi. "From what we were told this Fox was suppose to be this tough individual but look at him. He's a sad excuse of…whatever he is. Perhaps it's time to put an end to him and collect our bounty." Nodding her head, Aimi started to summon a large sphere of transparent wind in each of her hands. At the same time Youta started to form two basketball size spheres with his flame powers.

From his position Fox could clearly see what was to come and that if he didn't do something fast he was in for some series trouble. Unfortunately his injured leg along with his body still not recovered from the previous attack he was unable to get away.

Having apparently gotten all the energy that they wanted, both Elementals launched their respected attacks. "Cyclone Break." Thrusting her hands forward, Aimi shot her attack at Fox. As the attack came towards it transformed itself into what resembled a cyclone.

"Inferno Fireballs." Heaving both balls of fire right after his partner Youta sent them at their opposition as well. When the two balls got close to the cyclone attack they swirled together into a swirling mixture of fire and wind.

What's happened next would what you consider strange. Acting without even thinking Fox stuck his right arm forward with the palm facing upward. Slowly a ball of blue chakra began to form in his palm. Then with his left hand he put even more chakra into the ball. He continued to do so until it appeared as though it was prepared. Prepared for what was unknown. Even to Fox.

Thrusting his arm forward both the blue ball and the combined attack of fire and wind collided with one another. A literal power struggle took place as the attacks tried to gain supremacy.

In the end the two attacks were so powerful that it caused them to explode. The result from it was a shockwave that cause all the nearby buildings to crumble to the ground. An enormous cloud of smoke consumed the entire area, making it impossible to tell if any of those that were in the vicinity had survived.

-/-/-/-/-

Moments Later…

After the explosion occurred all of Konoha became concentrated on where it happened. While that was going on no one notice someone going rooftop to rooftop. That person being none other than Naruto, who was still in his other form Fox. _"I can't believe that I survived that explosion. I must be the luckiest man in the world."_ His little celebration was cut short when a shooting pain went through his ribs. _"Okay. Maybe lucky is the correct term. Being damn fortunate is more like it."_

Thinking back to the fight Fox couldn't help but recall when he preformed that strange attack. _"If it wasn't for that move showing up like it did I would've died back there. But for the life of me I don't know how I was able to do it when I've never done it before let alone seen it."_

Soon the injuries that Fox suffered were starting to catch up to him as his vision began to blur. It got so bad that miscalculated one of his jumps onto a rooftop he went crashing down alongside the building until he forcefully landed on someone's balcony. The impact of the blow was so painful that Fox couldn't get back to his feet.

"_This isn't good. I must be more hurt than I thought."_ Soon, the feeling of unconsciousness started to come over him. _"No. I can't pass out here. If I do, I could be spotted and I'll have no way to defend myself. I just need to stay awake just long enough for me to get home."_ Unfortunately he wouldn't be able to that as he blacked out right there on the balcony with no sign of life.

-/-/-/-/-

"Are you sure that you're all right?"

"I'm telling you I'm fine." exclaimed Youta. Like with Fox, both he and Aimi were able to escape from the devastation that the three of them caused but not easily. "I can't believe that Fox guy did something like that." he mentioned as he gripped his sore right arm. "We were fortunate enough to get out of there alive."

"I'll say." agreed Aimi. "If I was able to move us out of danger we probably wouldn't have gotten out of that alive." After making their escape the two Elementals headed back to the place where the person who had set the bounty was located. They soon got there and were readied to have a discussion with the concealed man.

"Ah, so you two managed to survive your little outing I see." remarked the shadowed covered man as he was referring to the news report that was being shown on a nearby television as it was talking about the incident that had transpired just earlier that day.

"It couldn't be helped." established Youta. "Our target did something that we weren't expecting from him. But that's besides the case. Now, if you be too kind as to hand over our payment as we were able to live up to our part of the deal."

"Are you sure about that? I believe I instructed for you to bring me the body of Fox as prove of you accomplishing your job. Whether he was alive or dead wasn't the case. In other words, if you want to collect your bounty bring the body of Fox to me. Now, leave me."

Clenching his fist in to contain the anger, the fire user walked out of the room with Aimi close behind. Once the giant doors were shut he allowed himself to vent. "What an egotistical son of a bitch. He should be thankful that I didn't burn him alive."

Doing her best to smooth the situation over, Kasumi tried to reason with him. "Calm down Youta. At the moment we can't do anything that could jeopardize us." That seemed to get through to her partner as he began to calm down. "Listen, I know that you don't wan to do this anymore than I do but we don't really have a choice. We need to collect this bounty if we want enough money to accomplish what we need."

"I know that Aimi. There's just something about that guy that I don't trust." Putting that thought aside Youta got back to the matter at hand. "Let's forget about that. We need to go find Fox if we want to collect our bounty."

"But how are we going to do that? For all we know he did die in that explosion and by now there has to be swarms of officers examining the place. No matter how tough we are there's no doubt that we'll be stop by them." Even though he didn't express it, Youta knew what Kasumi was saying was true. "For now let's just wait. We both need time to rest up from our injuries that we endured in the battle. If Fox is indeed alive then there's no doubt that he'll show himself. If not, then we'll just have to draw him out like before. That is of course if he's still alive."

* * *

An interesting chapter, wouldn't you readers agree? I'll admit that the abilities of Youta and Ami may be a stretch but bare with me. Just think of it as them having more control of elemental chakra/jutsus. You may of also noticed that Naruto/Fox used an incomplete version of the Rasengan. In a way you could say that he did it subconsciously. When he learns how to do it correctly, that'll be a while. 

That's the end of the chapter. I hope to have the next one, which will be the end of this two parter, in a few weeks. That's the plan at least. Before you go, I hope that you'll be kind to leave a review. Remember, reviews are a good motivation to get chapters out.


	11. Resolving

Here's the second and final chapter of this two parter. This continues from where the last chapter left off.and hopefully you like how everything turned out. As for the usual disclaimer, I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Chapter 11:  
Resolving

"_Man, what's going on?"_ Groggily Fox opened his eyes and immediately he saw that laying on a bed in a room that was not his. Pulling himself to a sitting position spotted a large mirror that was hanging on the door. By what was seen in the reflection he saw that both his other form as well as the genjutsu was still in action. Another thing he saw was that all over different parts of his body were a variety of bandages wrapped around parts of his body. _"Apparently I didn't make it home before I blacked out. But the question that needs to be asked now is where I am and who treated my wounds? I don't know why but I feel as though I've seen this room before."_

His train of thought was soon broken when someone opened the door and entered the room with a tray in hand. "Oh, you're awake." Walking over to the bed, the person placed the tray on a nearby nightstand and sat down on an available chair. "You must've taken a real beating since you're as injured as you are." During all this, Fox kept quiet as he didn't know how to respond properly.

He finally was able to collect himself enough that he could say something. "I'm grateful for your help. Truly I am but I really must be going." He was able to get to his feet but began to stagger as his legs felt like jelly. Right before he fell, the person came to his side and steadied him.

"Take it easy." Slowly the person eased Fox back onto the bed. "You were in pretty bad shape when I found you on my balcony." Reaching over the person began to remove one of the bandages from his right arm. Once it was completely removed they saw that there wasn't any sign of the injury that may have been there. "What in the world? How can this be? There was a huge gash here. But now it's gone."

Becoming a little uncomfortable with the closeness that he was in, he loosened the arm from the person. "Let's just say that I'm a quick healer. Now I should really be going Hinata." When that named was said, the person, now identified as Hinata was shocked.

"How did you know my name? I don't remember ever telling you."

Quickly realizing his mistake, Fox tried to think of a reasonable excuse. "How couldn't I? You're the eldest daughter of the of the well known Hyuga family. The next one to take over leadership of the family after your father steps down. Also, I was the one who saved you and your sister from that traitorous Mizuki." After saying that, he could see that Hinata was still not all at ease with his explanation. "Trust me Ms. Hyuga, I don't mean you any harm. I was just happening to be returning from a rough encounter when apparently I was overcome by my injuries and crashed upon your balcony."

Suddenly the sound of someone knocking on Hinata's door was heard. Immediately Fox tried to find a place to hide. When he found a suitable one Hinata went ahead and opened the door. From his position the human demon container couldn't really see who it was but when he heard the person's voice he recognize who it was.

"Here are the bandages that you asked for." said the younger Hyuga sibling, Hanabi. "I hope that they are useful to you and your guests." That was all that was said as she closed the door behind her. It wasn't until the door was close that Hinata noticed the shocked expression that was on Fox's face.

"You don't need to worry. She won't tell about you being here. She was the one who help me tend to your wounds and made sure that no one knew about your unexpected appearance."

That put Fox at ease as he wasn't really prepared to deal with other Hyuga members showing up. He remembered that there were those in the family who wasn't all that excited about him. Maybe it was because they felt that he disrespected them in someway.

"It appears as though you and your sister have a better relationship with one another. How did that happen? Last I heard the two of you weren't on the best of terms." Fox knew that he was probably treading on a sensitive subject but his curiosity got the best of him.

"It started after you saved us from Mizuki. I'm not sure what specifically made her changed her but since then she hasn't been treating me as if I was…nothing." That was all that Fox wanted to hear. Slowly he started to remove the rest of his bandages and with the exception of a few remaining scorch marks he seemed to be in good enough shape if you didn't count still being worn out.

Having regained enough of his strength to at least make it back home, Fox started to head for the door. "Well, thanks again for your help. Tell your sister that I'm thankful for her help also. I should be going before my being here is discovered." Before he could leave though, he was stopped when Hinata suddenly grabbed his arm.

"Please wait. Could you tell me who you are and I don't mean your name. I mean who you _really_ are." It was obvious by the tone of her voice that the Hyuga was not pleading with him but wasn't that far off from it.

Fox didn't really know what to do about this situation. On one hand he wanted to tell her who he _really_ was. But on the other if he told her it could cause problems later on and what if she couldn't handle it? If he confessed that he was actually Naruto Uzumaki, her friend, it may end their friendship. Casting a glance at Hinata he could see that by her eyes that she very much wanted to know. Coming to a decision he decided to meet her halfway.

"I can't tell you everything but I can give you the basic. I'm human but not entirely." That seemed to confuse Hinata. "I'm a human who has a demon within him. It's because what's inside of me that my parents were killed. Originally it lived inside of my father but when he died it was passed on to me."

"A-Are you telling me that d-demons really do exist?" It was obviously that this bit of news really shook Hinata as she didn't expect something like that to be said. "Things such as the nine-tailed demon that was suppose to be nothing more than a legend?"

When he heard that, Fox couldn't help but laugh slightly from it. "You're right. Remember, every legend has a thread of truth within them. There's a dark side in this world that doesn't really talked about in the public eye. Whether it's someone who's more dangerous than someone who has a bloodline or is something else it doesn't matter. Its things like that I wish to use this curse of mine to help those who need it." Stopping for a moment the fiery orange haired demon container allowed himself to collect himself before he continued. "That's all I can and wish to say about that. Don't ask me to say anymore about the subject."

When he heard nothing from the elder Hyuga sister he decided that perhaps it was wise for him to leave. Heading for the door again but once again he was stopped by Hinata. "I don't care what you are. ...Whether you're human, demon or both, I don't care. You have done nothing but try to help people without so much as asking for a thank you. Even with the majority of the village thinking that you're nothing more than some despicable piece of trash you're one of the admirable people I've seen."

"Thank you Ms. Hyuga. I truly appreciate it." _"More than you'll ever know."_

"Please, call me Hinata. I think after saving my life you the privilege to do so."

From the corner of his eye Fox could've sworn that Hinata was blushing slightly. Not wanting to press the issue he focused on the matter at hand. "If that's what wish, then so be it. Thank you…Hinata." Going over to the door he poked his head out to peer at either side of the hallway. "You're words were greatly appreciated. You're words were always able to put me at ease in such times as this." With that he headed off as quietly as possible.

Shocked by his action, Hinata rushed over to see what had happen to him but didn't see him from either side of the hallway. It wasn't until she glanced out of her window did she happen to catch a glimpse of what appeared to be Fox leaping over of the Hyuga compound fence. Apparently he had somewhat managed to make a complete escape without trouble.

"_To be able to make an escape from the Hyuga compound without being spotted by any of the guards is something. Very few have been able to do such a thing."_ Hinata was going to put that had occurred out of her mind for the moment until something suddenly came to her. _"Wait a minute. What did he mean that my words always being able to put him at ease? The only other time I ever supported him openly was during the discussion that was at school. Does that mean that Fox is someone that I already know?"_

-/-/-/-/-

"_Man that was getting too close for comfort. For a moment I was actually thought about telling Hinata was I really was. Thankfully I was able to subdue that idea. Right now I need to head home and allow myself to fully heal up from what had happen."_ Fox was on the verge of being home when he heard something. Following the sound of the noise he saw that across the street was an electronics store. On the display window he saw a bunch of TVs and each of them were broadcasting some kind of news report.

"This is Genma Shiranui, with a special news report. We've just gotten word of the industrial district of Konoha is being consumed in fire. However, what is strange is that actually eye witnesses have stated that the fire seems to have a mind of its own as it's only consuming certain parts of the industrial distinct. Also, strong winds have been reported to have been taken place in the same area which is considered abnormal for the area. We'll report more when we get word."

Fox knew the real reason for the strange incidents that were occurring and despite the exhaustion that he was experiencing he knew that he had no other choice but to face the Elementals again. Quickening his pace he hurried home to get what he needed for the upcoming battle. Though the odds were more against him than they were the first time Fox couldn't just stand back and do nothing.

-/-/-/-/-

This is getting boring." Not too far from the industrial district were Aimi and Youta. They were currently using their powers to cause havoc in the area. While Youta was burning some of the buildings with his fire abilities, Aimi was using her powers of the wind to send numerous stuff into the air then letting it crash back to the ground. "This whole thing was fun at first but it's starting to lose its thrill very fast." stated Kasumi with a bored tone of voice.

"This isn't supposed to be fun." retorted Youta as he sent another fireball to a warehouse. "We're doing this to solve something. We need to find out if Fox indeed met his end in our first confrontation or he is in fact still alive."

"Was that all?" spoke a third person from behind them. Turning around they spotted Fox. "Well, if that was the case you could've just called." Once confirming that it was indeed their intended target Youta immediately went on the attack when he sent a stream of fire at Fox who was able to avoid it. "Man, what a warm welcome. I can feel sincerity of it."

Infuriated the ill placed humor, Youta went after him again with a volley of fireballs which Fox was nimbly avoiding them. "I was hoping that you would do better than this. At least be able to singe my hair."

The taunting was obviously getting on the fire user's nerves as his entire body was beginning to be consumed in flames. It was as though it was reflecting the mood that he was in. _"Oh, smart move Naruto. Piss off the guy that could burn you alive with a simple hand gesture."_

What came caught the demon host by complete surprise as a humungous wave of flames coming towards him. Naturally escaping the attack was Fox's reaction but there was no way for him to get out of harm's way in time. _"I have to think of something quick or I'll be burned alive."_

Soon the waves of fire consumed the entire body of Fox. "Well, I guess that's it. It turned out easier than I thought it would." remarked a satisfied Youta as he admired his work. "Hopefully they'll be enough of him that'll be able to prove that we have dealt with him and allow us to collect the bounty."

Slowly the flames began to dissipate. The two Elementals expected to see a scorch body they saw nothing but a large hole on the floor that their target once stood. Before anything could be said, the sound of something crumbling could be heard. Looking down it was discovered that in the spot between the two element users began to break apart. Realizing what the cause could be they both leaped back just as Fox broke through the concrete and was standing before his opposition once again.

"Damn. That was close. I almost had you there. You may have gotten the better of me last time but the same thing won't happen this time." Reaching into one of his pockets Fox pulled out two small black balls. He would then throw them to the ground which when they hit it caused a large cloud of smoke to cover the area.

"Do you actually think that this little smokescreen of yours will protect you?" questioned Aimi who unlike her associate had been doing she managed to maintain her composure. With a simple gesture of the hand the smoke was blown away with a gust of wind. Expecting to spot Fox to be close by, they were shocked to see that he was nowhere in sight.

"Up here you two." Looking up they saw Fox falling from the sky and was heading straight towards them. Being taken completely off guard from the unexpected maneuver only Aimi was able to get to a safe distance but the same couldn't be said for Youta. Before he was able to get away Fox was able to hit him with a fist to the face. With the force from the fall combined with his actual strength he had behind the blow it caused Youta to go crashing down to the ground. Making sure that he didn't share the same fate, Fox was able to cushion his fall while also creating a safe distance away from his last obstacle.

Not taking too kindly to what happened to her comrade, Aimi sent a burst of wind, intended to take care of Fox. The strong winds cause the demon host to be pushed back a few feet and it was a while until an idea came to him. Crouching down he drove his clawed fingers into the concrete ground. Though it prevented him from being blown off the roof it didn't stop him from being pushed back bit by bit. After a while it appeared as the ground had been slashed up by Fox's claws.

It was basically became a test of wills as they tried to endure what was happening until one of them gave. That person would be Aimi who would wasn't able to maintain the constant flow of strong winds. As soon as he felt the wind force go down Fox went into action. Reaching into his pocket once again he pulled out another smoke bomb. Throwing it to the ground it caused another smokescreen to be created.

"Come on. Not this lame trick again. It may have worked once but not a second time." Just like before, Aimi blew the smoke away with her wind power and as before Fox was nowhere to be seen. Thinking that he would try to attack from above again she looked up but saw that it wasn't the case. "Where is he? Where did he disappear to?"

She got her answer when someone wrapped their arm around their neck from behind while the person's other hand was pressing a kunai against the base of her back. "Maybe you should've looked behind." Coming to the realization that it was Fox who had a hold of her she attempted to break free but was unable to do so.

"I'd think twice before you try to escape." warned Fox with absolute seriousness. "You may be quick but I don't think that you're quick enough to escape before I react. Also, it appears that I'm stronger than you." To further state his point Fox pressed his dagger a little harder against her back. As much as she hated to admit it but Aimi knew what he was saying was true.

From the corner of his eye, Fox caught sight of Youta getting back to his feet and when he saw his companion's predicament he instantly became enraged and enveloped both of his hands in flames. "Let her go or I'll make you regret it."

Not allowing the demand affect him, Fix simply placed Aimi between him and Youta. "Perhaps you should think twice about what you want to do. While you're trying to hit me you might accidentally hit your friend as well. Do you really want to take that chance?"

Thankfully those words got through to the fire user as the flames dispersed. "That's good. Now we can discuss some things and just so that we have things start out in good terms, here you go." To the surprise of his opposition Fox released Aimi and pushed her over to her comrade.

"Do you actually believe that just because you did that we're going to trust you?" It was apparent that little gesture didn't really helped to changed the opinions of the Elementals as Youta was about to restart his attack. "Don't start pretending that you're all that good."

"That's fine." returned Fox as he put his kunai away. "Then we'll go ahead and pretend that I basically spared your friend's life when I had the opportunity to take her life." Fortunately that caused Elementals to be hesitant in resuming the fight. "Listen. I don't know what your deal is but before yesterday I had no problem with you. Heck, I didn't even know about you."

Calming himself before he did something without thinking he took a few deep calming breaths. "But if you wish to continue to cause mayhem in the village that I swore to help protect you'll leave with me with no other choice. The least that you can do it tell me why you're so set on collecting whatever bounty that's on my head."

Neither one of the element users said a word as they were considering on whether or not to tell their adversary the reason why they were doing such things. "Our reason for attacking you is not because we want vengeance as we have no ill will towards you." established Aimi who apparently had taken the task of explaining. "We are doing this simply because we have no other choice."

"No other choice? What in God's name are you talking about?"

"We live in a village far from here and in that village both Youta and I are two of four children who have the ability of an element. However, the people that live there are very poor and barely have enough to live. Then we were contacted by someone that told us that are unique abilities could help us require the money that would help our village become financial secure for quite sometime and all we had to do is complete a certain job." Nothing had to be said as to what that job was.

"In other words, if you wish to save your home you need to collect the bounty that's been placed on my head and the only way that you can do that is by delivering me to the benefactor to prove that you did the job. Whether I'm dead of alive doesn't matter." The silence from the two was all the conformation that Fox needed. "Then if that's the case, let's give them what they wanted." The confusion was evident on Youta and Aimi's faces.

-/-/-/-/-

"Ah, so you finally returned." In the undisclosed location the unidentified man who had placed the bounty on Fox's head sat back as the Elementals came in and they were not alone. "And you brought me a gift."

Being carried by some men was the motionless body of Fox. Dropping their target to the ground, the two Elementals stood defiantly in front of the unknown man. "We did what you wanted." spoke Youta. "We present you the corpse of the one known as Fox. Now hold up your end of the deal and give us what we were promise."

With a snap of his fingers a servant came in and handed Aimi a large black briefcase. Opening the briefcase they saw that inside it was the agreed amount of money for completing the bounty. "As you can see I'm a man of my word. Now, if you can excuse yourself I'll go ahead and depose of the body." Not showing any sign of arguing, Youta and Aimi exited the room, leaving the unidentified man with the motionless body of Fox. "With them out of the way I'm able to what I wanted to do."

Reaching to his pocket he pulled out what revealed as a scalpel. Slowly he leaned forward and was positioning the scalpel on top of the chest of his prone target. "It's time that I find out what you really are." Just as he was about to press the scalpel against the boy's chest he would receive a surprise.

Before he could even press the blade against flesh a hand grabbed onto the man's arm. That hand belonged to none other than Fox. "Had you going there, didn't I?" With a hefty shove he pushed the man away. Getting back up to his feet Fox dusted himself off.

"How can this be?" questioned the shocked man. "You weren't moving. You were dead!"

"Does the saying, 'Appearances can be deceiving' ring a bell?" posed Fox. "Don't get me wrong. Those two that you sent after me were tough. Sadly though they let it slipped up by saying that were trying to collect a bounty that was placed on me. Instead of beating up the middleman to find out who place it I took a dive and have them take me here." Seeing the irritation that was on the man's face, Fox couldn't help but smile. "Now, why don't you go ahead and tell me why you went through all of this to get me, Amachi."

Indeed the man behind the whole bounty fiasco was none other than the derange doctor, Amachi. He was the same doctor who was responsible for the genetic splicing that resulting in the situation that Isaribi was currently going through.

"Very clever Fox." stated Amachi. "Coming up with such a maneuver in such a situation is impressive. Yes, I'm the one who put the bounty on you. As to why, let's say that you've caught my interest. Obviously you're not human and I'm curious to find out what you are exactly." Smiling cruelly he placed his scalpel in front of his face to add to the madness that he had been already demonstrating. "I wish to dissect you and see what makes you tick."

"Well, as much as I appreciate the extra attention. I'm afraid that I must decline." Fox's words clearly didn't sit well with the doctor as his smile slowly turned into an irritated scowl. "All I'm here to do is to take care of the business that I have with you." He further showed the trueness of his words by stretching his fingers out and in doing so presented the sharpness that his claws were. "Remember, I gave you the opportunity to continue living last time. Apparently you haven't learned you listen."

"That's where you're wrong." Snapping his friends, a swarm of men rushed into the room. They were the same ones as before but there was one difference and that was that they were carrying weaponry. Some of them had swords while others were preferred to use metal gauntlets. "Still feel confident about your predicament?"

Instead of seeing a look of concern on the demon host's face, he saw that Fox was actually smiling. "This is your backup plan? Having weapons won't make a big of a difference." Those words would seemingly comeback and bite him in the ass as a sword was thrust into his back. There was enough force behind the attack that the blade actually came out through the front. However, just after being stabbed, Fox disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

"What the hell?" wondered Amachi. "I saw him get stabbed. Where could he have gone?"

"I'm over here." Stepping through the doorway that the Elementals had taken what believed to be his prone body was Fox. What else was strange was that there wasn't any sign of the stabbing that he had received only moments ago. "Again I had you fooled. Did you actually think that there wasn't anymore to my plan?" The expression on the doctor and his men's face was all that he needed for confirmation.

"Seconds after they thought that I was knocked out I swapped myself with a replica of myself. Or to be more precise, a shadow clone of me. Basically it's a copy of me but disappear after suffering a hard blow. Too bad for you my little trick ruined your attempted surprise." Reaching into both of his pockets he pulled out a smoke bomb and a kunai. "Now it's my turn." Smashing the smoke bomb to the ground it caused the whole room to be covered in a dense smoke.

Because of this latest problem it was impossible for the weapon wielding men to see anything clearly. That hindrance didn't apply to Fox as he was had a better to locate the men by using his other senses. With that advantage it wouldn't take long for the demon vessel to deal with the men.

As this went on Amachi, nothing was happening to him but he could hear the screams of pain from his thugs as they were being taking down by Fox. When the smoke finally dispersed the only ones that were still standing were Fox and Amachi. As for the men, they were all unconscious on the ground.

"That takes care of the annoyance obstacles." commented Fox. "That leaves only me and you." A feral smile came across the face of the nine-tailed demon jailor. "If you have any final words you better say them now. That is, while you still have the chance."

Almost like déjà vu, Fox once again started to beat the living crap out of the demented doctor. Though, this time he was even closer to beating him over that inch of the man's life. Having done what he wanted to do Fox headed off but stopped when he reached the doorway. "Hopefully you'll be smart enough to put a stop to your bounty on me. That is unless you want to suffer another beating." That said, Fox took his leave and left what remained of his opposition on the ground.

-/-/-/-/-

It wasn't until he was a few blocks away that Fox stopped his running from Amachi's place. _"I hope that puts an end to this hunting me like some animal. Perhaps I should have the ANBU deal with the doctor just to be safe."_

"It seems like everything went well." Looking to his side he saw that not that far away from him was the two Elementals, Youta and Aimi. Getting rid of the amused expression on his face, Fox marched over to them until they were essentially face to face.

An intense moment went across them for sometime. All of a sudden, both Fox and Youta smiled and shook each other's hand. "Told you that the plan would work." established Fox with assurance. "You get me inside, you get the bounty for 'taking me in' and no one expects that we set the whole thing up. However, to be on the safe side you should head back to your village and then lay low for a while."

"We understand the risks for our decision." retorted Youta with all honesty. "We see now that you're not one of the bad guys and you're needed here. Besides, the both of us got what we wanted." To further his point he lightly kicked the briefcase that was by his feet. "We got the money that'll help our village and you discovered who was behind the bounty that was placed on your head. I hope that it was worth it."

"Yeah, it was worth it." Fox confirmed. "You better be going. Don't want to risk someone seeing the three of us together."

"You're right. Good luck on your fight. You may find it shocking but if you ever need help, contact us and we'll be there to assist you." Turning around he walked away but Aimi hesitated.

"Youta may already have told you this but I want to thank you and I wish to show you my appreciation." Before Fox had the chance to reply she leaned over and planted a quick kiss on his lips. Caught completely off guard he simply stood there in shock until Aimi backed away. "Contact us if you need to and I don't mean if you're in trouble. If you know what I mean."

Still shocked by the sudden kiss he simply watched as the Elementals headed off to whenever their village was. Finally recovering he couldn't help but blush from the memory of the act that he just experienced. Feeling that it was time to call it a night he hurried home.

-/-/-/-/-

In no time Fox arrived to the apartment complex that he lived. Making sure that no one was watching he ducked into a nearby alley. Once there he closed his eyes and after taking a deep breath he reverted back to his original self of Naruto. Stepping out of the alley he entered and went to the level where the apartment was. Opening the door he was met with complete silence as there wasn't anyone there. _"Obviously Jiraiya still hasn't returned. I don't know whether that's a blessing or not."_

Naruto wouldn't think about it for long as soon a case of exhaustion from everything that he dealt with recently were finally taking its toll. Not even bothering to change his clothes, the jailor of the nine-tailed demon collapsed on his bed and allowed sleep to overtake him.

* * *

Well, what do you think? Was it what you hoped that it would be? You may be wondering why I have Fox/Naruto form a partnership of sorts with the Elementals. The reason why I did that was because I wanted to show that there might be people who who are doing questionable things for a good cause. Believe me, there'll be other chapters that'll deal with the the subject again. 

Next time that update will probably be sometime near the end of March. No promises though. The storyline for the story right now is that I'm going to have three more original chapters before I shift to how the series went. Namely, the teams and chunin exams.


	12. Accused

Here you go readers. Here's the next chapter to my 'One and the Same' story. This chapter was an interesting one for me to do and you may see why as you read it. Now, as for the disclaimer, I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Chapter 12:  
Accused

"All right now. I think it's time you tell us why you did it?" In a room that had nothing more than a table and a few chairs was an ANBU member whose face was hidden by a bird mask. The reason why he was there was because he was questioning someone and so far hadn't gotten any answers. "We got witnesses who saw you at the scene and we found the item inside your apartment. Care to explain how that's possible?" Again there was no answer. "Silence isn't really helping your case."

"What do you want me to say?" shouted the accused person who finally broke their silence. "I already told you that I don't know how it got in my apparent but I wasn't the one who took it. "I'm innocent."

"So you say. But unless you can present us with something that can prove otherwise you're our prime suspect, Kurenai Yuhi."

-/-/-/-/-

"This is bullshit." established an angry Naruto. He wasn't the only one as both Shikamaru and Choji felt pretty much the same as news about Kurenai became publicly known. "They can't be serious, can they?"

"I'm afraid they are." acknowledged Shikamaru. Instead of talking in his usual laidback tone he was talking with controlled anger. "Apparently she's being held for stealing a valuable scroll and supposedly murdering an ANBU Black Op. They even said that there are even witnesses to what happen."

"It has to be a mistake." insisted Choji. He was so upset about the situation that he wasn't eating any food. "How can they even think of such a thing is possible?"

"You have to admit though that the evidence is really stacked against her." The shadow user's words didn't sit well with his friends as they gave him not so pleasant looks. "That doesn't mean that I believe them of course. All of this is just troublesome."

"You got that right." agreed Naruto. It was then that something came across his mind. "Hey, where's Hinata?" He got his answer when the other two simply pointed over to the nearby lake. Sitting at the edge was the girl in question. "She seems upset. Someone should go talk to her." When he saw the looks that he was getting from his friends, Naruto knew what they were thinking without having to say it. "I guess I'm the one nominated."

-/-/-/-/-

"A penny for your thoughts?" Naruto's words did the trick as it snapped Hinata out of her haze. "Man, you were really out of it. You didn't even hear me coming."

"S-Sorry." the Hyuga apologized. "I have a lot on my mind."

"That's not surprising. Considering everything that's has been going on." Going ahead, Naruto took a seat beside his friend. Nothing was said between them for a while but the conversation would resume shortly. "How are you holding up? I mean with what's being said in the news and all." The rest was left hanging as he wasn't sure how to say the rest without it possibly coming out as something that it wasn't attended to be.

"I'm fine." she answered simply. "Really, I am." By the sound of her voice she didn't sound fine. "Why shouldn't I be?"

"Maybe because what's going on with Kurenai is really bothering you." replied the blonde. "She basically became surrogate mother to you after your mom passed away." The wasn't any attempt of denying from Hinata as they both knew that there was truth behind those words. "Listen. Whatever is going on we'll figure it out and prove that Kurenai is innocent." _"Even if it means that I have to do some investigation of my own."_

-/-/-/-/-

"_Well, this is the place."_ Thanks to the information that he gotten from Shikamaru, Naruto found out where the place that Kurenai had allegedly killed the ANBU member. Now, as Fox he was trying to find some type of clue to help prove otherwise. So far this search had turned up with nothing. "Come on, there has to be something."

"What are you doing here?" Turning quickly around, Fox saw a man that was older than him. He had spiky brown hair, brown eyes and a beard that went down from his sideburns and came together at his chin. He was wearing a blue shirt that was underneath a dark green vest that was left unzipped and pants that match his shirt. "I'll ask you again. What are you doing here?"

"Not wanting to have things to become physical, Fox decided to cooperate. "I believe for the same reason that you're here, Asuma Sarutobi." The person was Asuma, the son of the hokage.

"You don't say? And what reason could that be?"

"Prove that Kurenai Yuhi was framed." That put a stop to any retort that the man was going to say. "So, are you going to just stand there or are you going to help?"

Without even waiting for a reason, Fox resumed his investigation. For the most part he was getting the same results as before he was interrupted. That would change when the demon host caught the scent of something. It was faint but still noticeable. Following the scent it led him to the base of a tree.

Nothing was immediately seen but it was when he went around the tree that he found something. Above Fox was a kunai that was embedded in a branch high above his head. Leaping up he managed to free it from the branch. It was basically like any other kunai except that the tip was curved slightly to the side. Another thing about it was that there were traces of blood on it.

"What do you make of this?" He tossed the kunai to Asuma who remained where he was last seen. Thankfully he managed to grab it easily with one hand.

"It's a specially made kunai. Mostly used by those who prefer to strike in precise areas while in fighting." informed Asuma. "Very few people even use these anymore. Also, there's blood on it. I think something about it not always getting a fatal blow. Though, I can't tell what it's from."

"Its human." declared Fox. "It came from a male and though I'm not certain but someone whose middle age."

"How can you be sure?" Fox answered by simply pointing to his nose. "You can't be serious. How could you do such a thing when no one else even found this thing?"

"What can I say, I'm different." If you don't believe me then get it checked out." The long haired demon vessel started to take his leave. "By some chance I'm right then meet me here. Some time tomorrow. Perhaps we can come up with something."

"Why are you doing this?" Asuma's question put a halt to Fox as he stopped where he stood. "What could you possibly gain from getting involved?"

"All you need to know is that if Kurenai is proven to be guilty then it'll hurt a close friend of mine." Fox responded from over his shoulder. Having nothing more to say he took off, not looking back.

-/-/-/-/-

"Tell me why I'm here again?" inquired Shikamaru.

"Because I need some information." replied Naruto. The two were at his place and were discussing what had been going on. "With Jiraiya gone my usual source of information is gone. That means if I want to know what exactly is happening with the whole Kurenai thing I need someone who can get it. Since you're the only one who knows what I'm trying to do I was hoping that you could help. Don't forget that your family is good at getting information."

"Man, you're really are troublesome. You know that?" All he got in response was Naruto smirking. "There's not much else to say that wasn't told to the public. However, from what I heard the scroll that was said to be stolen was one that contained a series of lethal kinjutsus. Of course kinjutsus are jutsus that are extremely dangerous if not deadly."

"It doesn't make sense though. Kurenai is more suited in doing genjutsu. Sadly, that doesn't help Kurenai's case since the scroll was found in her home."

"I wouldn't be so sure about that." That remark from the shadow user caught Naruto's immediate attention. "I'm not completely sure but apparently the scroll that was found was actually a fake."

"Then if it was a fake then why not let Kurenai go? The scroll wasn't in her home."

"Because they believe that the fake was just something to throw the accusation away from her. They think that she merely hid the real one somewhere before being caught. Regardless of that, if the scroll that was found was a fake then that means…"

"That the one responsible still has the real one." Naruto finished his friend's accusation. "Hopefully that dagger that I gave Asuma will turn up something."

"Was that really a smart thing to do? Doing such a thing could create more trouble than good." What the Nara boy said sounded reasonable but his blonde friend had to argue his case.

"Maybe you're right." The blonde commented. "But there wasn't much of a choice. Currently our resources are very limited. Perhaps he'll find something that we couldn't." Though he said nothing it could be seen that Shikamaru was agreeing with him. "Look, it's been a long day so let's call it quits for now."

Having no argument being made, Shikamaru headed home, leaving Naruto alone to think. _"Something is going on here. More than anyone has realized yet. Better figure out what it is before it's too late."_

-/-/-/-/-

"All right, I'm here." There wasn't any response from whoever Asuma was there for. "Are you going ot show yourself or am going to leave?"

"Sorry about the wait." spoke up someone behind the bearded man. Turning around Asuma saw Fox, the person that he was waiting for. "I needed to make sure that you didn't have any surprises for me. Having a possible ambush set up is a good example."

"You don't have to worry. I came here alone. Now can we get to why we're here?" Fox agreed with a nod of his head. Reaching into his vest, Asuma pulled out the dagger that was found yesterday. "You're assumptions were correct. The blood that was on it was from the ANBU Black Op that had been killed during the whole scroll stealing incident."

"I kind of already figured that out. What I need to know if there was anything else that was found out about it." established Fox. "So far all that is know is that the person responsible used the kunai to kill a person." Irritation was growing within the demon host as it seemed like he wasn't going to get any useful information from this meeting.

"Fortunately that wasn't the only thing that I managed to discover. I was right I said that not many people use those kinds of kunai anymore. In fact, only one person has been known to still use them on a regular basis." Again Asuma reached into his vest but this time pulled out a folded piece of paper. "Here's the address of where the person lives. I'm unable to take any action without causing attention to myself. So what I'm trying to say is…"

"You want me to check it out." concluded Fox. "By me checking the place out it'll keep your involvement a secret." There wasn't any denying of what had been said as it was the truth. Taking the piece of paper, Fox was prepared to leave but stopped for a moment. "That scroll of kinjutsus must be very important. Especially since the one that was found was a fake."

The surprise on Asuma's face clearly showed that he said the right thing. "Oh, I know all about the scroll that you guys recovered from Kurenai Yuhi's apartment wasn't the real one. That means that the real one is still out there somewhere. I do have my own sources when it takes to getting information."

"That doesn't matter. What does is that you check the place out and if the person responsible is there you find someone from ANBU and let them deal with it." Having all the priorities in order, the two of them went their separate ways and for one of them, they went to handle a specific job.

-/-/-/-/-

The streets of Konoha were deserted as the night developed the area. In one particular area there was a home that seemed to be devoid of life. However, that appeared to not be the case as there were signs of movement going on inside.

"_Okay. Where would I put a kunai if I lived here?"_ After sneaking into the house, Fox started to search throughout the place in the hopes of finding something to help him with his investigation. So far he had found nothing.

That would change though when he came across a room that appeared to be there to display things. Being more precise, it was displaying a variety of weapons that were hanging all about the walls. Though the weapons were impressive there was something particular that caught his attention was a row of kunais that were similar to the one that had been found. Amongst those kunais there was a spot where one of them could've been.

"What are you doing here?" At the doorway was a guy that seemed to be a few years older than Fox. His gray hair was long enough that it was tied in a simple ponytail and wearing an outfit that comprised of a purple shit, matching pants that had a touch of blue in them and an off yellow sash tied around his waist. Last but not least were the man's black eyes that were behind a pair of glasses. "May I ask what you're doing in my home?"

"Just admiring this weapon display that you have here." commented casually to prevent any unneeded confrontation. "Can't help but notice that some of it is missing. Mind me asking me why?"

Of all the reactions that Fox was expecting the one that he got wasn't one of them as he saw the young man became greatly distraught. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Come on now. Who are you trying to kid? I'm talking about the weapon that you have missing here was found at a scene where an ANBU Black Op was murdered." The subtle approach went on the waste side as it was time to get to the matter at hand. "Better start talking or you'll regret it…Kabuto Yakushi."

"I'm telling you I don't know what you're talking about." reestablished the now identified Kabuto. "I've never even held an actual weapon before." He would tried to further prove what he was saying was the truth by showing his hands to his accuser. "If I had used a weapon my hands would have blisters and calluses. But I have neither. Therefore, I can't be the one that you're looking for."

Regrettably, Fox had to agree. A person who had experience in using weapons there would be proof of it being seen. The unrecognized weapon mistress, TenTen was a good example to that fact. He probably the only exception due to his quick healing prevented it from happening to a certain extent. "Then if it wasn't you, then who could've done it? Who else could be able to take a kunai to use to kill an ANBU?"

Kabuto actually took those questions into consideration. "Besides me no one goes into this room. No one that is except for-" Whatever he was going to say was left unsaid as Kabuto suddenly became troubled. Before Fox could ask for him to spit it out, someone went ahead and answered for him.

"Me." At the doorway was a man that was older than the other two. Dressed in an outfit that was similar to Kabuto's except that instead of purple there was gray and the sash was white. He had black hair that reached the top of his neck, black eyes and a scar across his left eyebrow.

"Yori, don't tell me that it was you." pleaded Kabuto. Obviously the two had some sort of connection with each other. "Why would you do such a thing brother?" There was the connection.

"You want to know why little brother?" inquired Yori in a monotone voice. "The answer's simple. I did it for power." Pulling something from his sash, it appeared to be a scroll with green coloring on both ends. "With the kinjutsus that are in this scroll there won't be anyone who can stand against me."

Yori's gloating would probably have continued if he hadn't had to suddenly avoid three coming shurikens that were thrown by Fox. "My, aren't you an impatient one. Maybe a demonstration of what I've learned is in order." Putting the scroll away, the older Yakushi sibling started to do a series of hand signs so to perform some type of jutsu.

Whatever jutsu he had planned it wouldn't come to pass as once again Fox interrupted him with a kunai being thrown and like with the shurikens, Yori avoided it by umping back. However, soon after dodging he was tackled by the nine-tailed jailor. The force of the blow along with it being unexpected of it resulted in them staggering through the window that was behind them.

Brushing away the shards of broken glass and ignoring the cuts from the crash, Yori got back to his feet. Not that far away was who in a similar condition. Neither one allowed their injuries to be a distraction as they were prepared to resume their fight.

"Persistent bastard, aren't you?" spat Yori who wasn't that amused about how things have gone. "While I found you amusing at first, you have become a real annoyance."

"If that's how you feel then you're going to really hate me after this." What Fox meant by that would be explained as standing not that far away was an identical version of him. Obviously it was a shadow clone. Though what caught Yori's attention was that in the hands of the clone was a familiar scroll. Quickly realizing what it was, Yori looked in his sash and saw that the kinjutsu scroll was no longer there.

"Give me that scroll back!" Rushing over he tried to regain possession of the scroll. He wouldn't get the opportunity as the clone took his leave by leaping from the rooftops and would soon be out of sight. "Get that clone to come back here this instant!"

"Afraid I can't do that." informed Fox. "Right now that clone should be finding the nearest ANBU and handing over the scroll. It probably won't be long until they're here and take you away."

To say that Yori was irate furious was an understatement. The only thing though was that it was in controlled anger. Reaching behind him he pulled out a kunai that was the same design as the ones that were found in the room. You could tell by how tightly that he was gripping it that he was struggling to contain his anger.

"Then I guess I'll just have to make it appear as though you were the one that was behind the whole thing." Immediately Yori went on the attack. Fortunately for Fox he was managing to avoid the majority of the attacks. That was not to say that he didn't receive any damage as there was the occasion that Yori was able to make contact. "Why don't you make things easier and just die?"

Avoiding another attempted strike, Fox sent the man a look of anger. At the same time he was grasping his left forearm as there was a cut from one of Yori's successful strikes. "Well, I've never been one to do things the easy way."

Finally it appeared as though the control that Yori had on his anger was broken as he charged in an absolute rage. While in most cases if a person attacks in a blind rage it would usually cause them to become sloppy. That wasn't the case at the moment since it looked as though it was making Yori fight better than he was before.

It actually got to the point that Fox was on the ground with Yori standing over him, prepared to strike if need be. "It appears as though we've reached the end of our fight. Have you anything to say before you meet your end?"

"Yeah, as a matter of fact, I do." Without the slightest bit of doubt the fiery orange haired young man stared at the man right in the eyes. "Why don't you take that kunai and shove it up your ass?"

That verbal jab didn't do well to calm Yori down. In fact, it did the complete opposite. Not delaying it any further he went for the killing blow but something happened that changed all that. Gasping in pain, Yori tried to reach behind beind for something but seemed to be unable to grab whatever it was. It wasn't until he turned around that Fox realize what was going on.

Sticking in the back of Yori's was a series of kunais and shurikens. As to where they came from was found out as a squad of ANBU Black Op made their appearance. Their appearance provided the distraction that Fox

Moving in he stuck his hand out which included sticking out his clawed fingers. Due to the distraction, Yori was unable to prepare himself of the oncoming attack. In an instant Fox's hand was in the chest of older Yakushi. There was enough force behind the blow that the tips of his claws were poking out of the back. Pulling his now blood-soaked hand out, Fox allowed Yori's body to crumple to the ground. There was no doubt about it. Yori Yakushi was dead.

Allowing his arm to just hang there at his side the long haired demon vessel stared down at the lifeless body as blood dripped from his hand. It was then that he took real notice of the ANBU that arrived. Neither one made a move as they didn't know how to handle the situation. Fox especially didn't know what to do as he was in no condition of fighting anyone at the moment.

"You can relax." stated someone that sounded familiar. Confirmation would come when stepping from behind the ANBU was Asuma and he wasn't alone as only a step behind him was Kabuto, the younger brother of the late Yori. "This boy told us what happen. We also got your gift." What Asuma meant by that was explained when he showed the kinjutsu scroll that was in his hand.

"Then I guess that means that my job here is done." Not waiting for any word of acknowledgement Fox took his leave. He didn't even look back as he allowed the ANBU to deal with what was left.

-/-/-/-/-

"So tell me. How does it feel to be a free woman again?"

"It feels great." stated a pleased Kurenai. She was being escorted by an also happy Asuma out of the Konoha jail. "You have no idea how glad I am to be leaving this place. I guess I have you to thank for that."

With being thanked for clearing someone from a crime that they were framed for would usually make a person happy, you couldn't say the same for Asuma. "It was nothing. I didn't do that much." What he said wasn't that far from the truth.

After Fox took off, the ANBU made sure that there wasn't anything that didn't belong on the body of Yori. They even gave Kabuto and the house the once over but found nothing. However, what really confused Asuma was that when everything was wrapped up there was no mention of Fox's involvement in the incident. When he asked his father, the Hokage what that was all about he said that it was ordered by the council to erase all mention of Fox. The reason that was given was that they didn't want it to be known that they had help from someone that they weren't sure about and had no control over.

"I know what you're thinking about." Though he wasn't suppose to, Asuma had told Kurenai what really happen. "Whatever reason the council has for doing what they did can be figured out later. For now, I want to enjoy my renewed freedom." Soon the two of them were out of the building and it was there that they saw that there was someone waiting for them. "Well, isn't this a pleasant surprise."

Standing not that far away was Hinata Hyuga. When she realized that she had been spotted she slowly made her way over to them. As Hinata headed over she kept her head looking toward the ground. Even after she got over to them she kept looking down and was now poking her fingers together in shyness.

"I-I'm glad that…that you're o-okay, Kurenai." Hinata managed to get out. She still kept her head downward as she still couldn't get herself to look up.

It wasn't until someone reached under her chin and lifted her head up that she did so. The one that who did was Kurenai who was kneeling before her. "Thank you Hinata. I'm sorry that I made you worry."

Finally whatever wall that had been blocking Hinata from expressing herself came crumbling down as she reached over and wrapped her arms around Kurenai's neck. Returning the gesture, Kurenai brought Hinata in a warm embrace. From where he was standing, Asuma couldn't help but smile at the tender scene that was before him.

-/-/-/-/-

At a nearby street corner a bit away from where at that moment was Naruto. He was far enough that it was impossible for any of those three to see him but close enough to see everything that had gone on. From place he could see that both Hinata and Kurenai were happy to see one another again.

Turning around he started to walk off. But looking over his shoulder to the scene that was taking place, Naruto couldn't help but to smile. _"Glad to see you happy again Hinata. Seeing you smile is what made all of this worth it."_ With that thought the boy continued to leave.

-/-/-/-/-

In the Yakushi home there seemed to be devoid of life as most of the house was consumed in darkness. The only sign of life was a room that Kabuto was in. He was sitting at a desk and staring at a picture frame that was in his hands. The picture was of him and his brother, Yori when they were younger.

"Do you regret what happen?" asked someone in a somewhat silent and slightly raspy type of voice. Whoever it was they couldn't be seen as they remained hidden in the shadows.

"No." answered Kabuto as he placed the picture frame face down on the desk. "I originally wanted my brother to be a part of the plan but he was against it. Fortunately, he still proved to be of some use, even if it was just as a corpse."

"You're really are a sadistic individual Kabuto." Stepping out from the shadows was an older man with pale white skin, long black hair and yellow eyes that appeared to be reptilian. "Having your dead brother's body as an escape goat for the theft and murder while you appear as though you were someone who unfortunately got involved in the incident."

Smiling, Kabuto pushed his glasses up. "It was nothing. Just a slight body controlling jutsu to make it appeared as though he was behind it all. A primitive form of puppetry that Sasori is known to do. Too bad we lost the scroll when it was all said and done."

"Indeed. Losing the kinjutsu scroll was a lost but not a complete one." stated the other man casually. "We managed to get some of what was inside so it's a reasonable sacrifice."

"What should we do about this Fox person?" wondered Kabuto. "If left unchecked he could cause us trouble."

The mentioning of that person caused the unidentified man to smile sinisterly. To add to the look his long tongue came out and licked across his lips. "That Fox character is truly an interesting person. He's definitely not an ordinary person. Wouldn't you say so Kabuto?"

"I believe that you're right, Lord Orochimaru."

* * *

Plenty of surrprises in this chapter, wouldn't you agree? I did this chapter for a couple of reasons. To help establish the connection that Hinata and Kurenai had with each other and also introduce Kabuto in a completely different way. They'll be more to what happen in this chapter but that'll be for a later time.

In the end, I hoped that you liked the chapter and how the story in general has been going. Hopefully the next chapter will be on sometime in th enear future. Until then, please be kind to leave a review to tell me what you think about the chapter/story.


	13. Guilt

First off I want to say sorry about the problem that was in the previous chapter. I realize that what I used for a scene break no longer works on . When I did it was already up and I thought that it would be kind of pointless to take the chapter out just to put two or three breaks. Hopefully the scene changes were obvioius enough that you noticed.

Now, as for this chapter, it's an interesting one and I hope that you think the same in a way. You'll just have to read it and decide that yourself. As for the disclaimer, I don'town Naruto.

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Chapter 13:  
Guilt

Moving in he stuck his hand out which included sticking out his clawed fingers. Due to the distraction Yori was unable to prepare himself for the oncoming attack. In an instant Fox's hand was in the chest of Yori. There was enough force behind the blow that the tips of the claws were poking out the back.

That appeared to be the end of it and the end of Yori Yakushi was certain. But when Fox tried to remove his hand it was grabbed by another hand, preventing it from removing. The owner of that hand belonged to was a shocker as it was from Yori. However, instead of the appearance that he had when he became impaled by Fox's claws, he looked more decayed and maggot ridden.

"You killed me." Yori spoke in a ghoulish voice. "Why did you kill me?" Suddenly, all that was left of Yori's body completely decayed away in a bloody mass of body parts. While the body had crumbled away the blood still remained on his hands.

For whatever reason the blood seem to trigger something within Fox. It was almost as if his train of thought was being replaced by one completely primal. All rash thinking went away and all that Fox wanted to have even more blood on his hands. Setting his sights on Asuma and the ANBU that were there he charged toward them in the hopes to satisfy that desire.

**00000000**

Jolting from what he just experienced Naruto woke up and was breathing heavily. Getting to a sitting position he placed his forehead in his hands in the hopes of dulling the headache that was beginning to come over him. _"Not again."_ When he was finally able to compose himself enough that he could think straight Naruto got out of bed and headed for the bathroom. Splashing water over his face he looked at himself in the mirror. What he saw shocked him completely.

Starring right back at him was not his usual spiky blonde haired self but him with long fiery orange hair version as Fox. "What the hell?" Rubbing his eyes in the hopes that it was just remaining bits of sleep that were making him see things he sighed when he realized that it wasn't his eyes playing tricks on him but in fact the real deal.

"I must've transformed without realizing in my sleep." assumed Naruto as he couldn't come up with any other reasonable excuse. Calming down he quickly returned to his usually self. Going ahead and getting himself ready he headed off for school. Perhaps the only good thing that came from that nightmare was that it woke Naruto earlier that he usually did so he had plenty of time to get there without being late.

As he headed for school Naruto became aware that he could do a quick once over of Konoha but decided against it. It was just that even though he had retained his composure he still wasn't up to become Fox and the nightmare from earlier didn't help matters. _"Ever sine that day I'm unable to get through a day without it replaying in my head."_ Subconsciously he glanced toward his right hand. _"It was only a few days ago that this hand was covered in the blood of Yori Yakushi. Though I've washed it countless times since then it feels as though it's still there."_

Naruto was so consume in his troubles that he didn't see where he was walking. He didn't even realize it until he collided with the person. "Oh, I'm sorry. I wasn't seeing where I was going." When there wasn't any reply he glanced over to whom it was and was a bit surprise by the identity of the person. "Isn't this a surprise? I didn't expect running into you."

The person that he was talking about was the big user, Shino Aburame. Not really unexpected, Shino didn't say a word. The only indication that he even acknowledged the blonde's words was a small nod of the head that could've been missed it you weren't paying attention. Since both were going to the same place the two of them walked together.

Neither one really said anything but it was for different reasons. For Naruto he was still trying to deal with the issues that he was experiencing while Shino merely preferred to remain quiet. It would be some time until something was said.

"If you allow your mind to be clouded it'll most likely lead to even more trouble." Shino suddenly speaking caught Naruto off guard and what he said only increase the surprise.

"Who says that my mind is clouded?" It was doubtful that the bug user knew what exactly was bothering Naruto but it was safer to go along until it was more certain to what he was talking about.

"I was merely making an observation." established Shino in his usual monotone of a voice. "You shouldn't keep the problems that you're thinking locked up. It'll just lead to more problems."

"Like you're one to talk!" yelled Naruto with sudden anger. "All you ever do is keep to yourself and hardly saying a word to anyone. So unless you stop acting like some emotionless shell, don't be telling me what to do."

The sudden outburst came as such a surprise that it caused Shino to stand where he was and the only sign of shock was his eyebrows raising above his sunglasses. Not even bothering to wait for a retort, Naruto was already continuing his walk to school. It was until he was a ways before he fully comprehended what he just did.

"_Where the hell did that come from?"_ For the life of him Naruto couldn't come up with a reason as to why he suddenly snapped like he did. _"It was like all of a sudden like something had taken me over and made me say those things."_ The recalling of what happened shook him in uneasiness. _"Whatever it was I don't want it to happen again."_

Thankfully it seemed as though that unexpected outburst appeared to be a one time thing as it didn't happen again. Naruto was also able to apologize to Shino for what he said and though he didn't say it the Aburame had accepted his apology. Things went like they usually did and it was currently he was in his athletics class that was being held outside, near a nice forest area of the school with their instructor, Kakashi.

"Okay everyone. Today we're going to continue with our practice to better control your chakra as well as increasing its capacity." informed Kakashi even though he had his face stuffed between the pages of his favorite little orange book. How he was able to read such a book such as Icha Icha Paradise was a mystery. Without even looking away from his book Kakashi started walking towards one of the trees.

What he did next came to a surprise to some as he started to climb the tree but not regular way. Instead, he was actually walking up the tree without a care in the world. Kakashi would continue to walk up the tree until he was literally upside down on one of the highest branches of the tree. "For the remainder I want you to get as high as you can on the trees and use a kunai to mark your progress." Having said what he wanted to say, Kakashi took his leave. Most likely so he could read his book in privacy but keep an eye on the children.

As time went on, most of the students were able to make moderate progress. There were exceptions of course. Those people would be Neji, Sasuke and surprising Sakura as they were able to reach the very top of most of the trees that they climbed. While the two boys were able to keep going they same couldn't be said for the pink haired girl who was completely exhausted as her chakra capacity wasn't that much. Of course, with those people there were those who weren't doing so well.

"Damn it. This is really becoming a pain the ass. In more ways than one." complained Naruto as he was rubbing his sore rear. Try as he might he managed to get only a few feet up before crashing back to the ground. "What's the deal? Why the hell haven't I done better than this?"

"Maybe it's because you suck." teased Kiba who was watching as the blonde continued to get higher and higher with each attempt. "It's a shock that you've got as high as you already have."

"Bite me, dog bog. On second thought, don't. I wouldn't want to get rabies." Ignoring the now irritated Inuzuka, Naruto once again tried to climb up the tree and managed to pass his previous attempt by a few feet before losing his feet lose their 'grip' on the tree which resulted in him crashing back to the ground. "Okay. This is getting tiresome."

"Isn't that something that Shikamaru would say?" Coming over was Ino and a still exhausted Sakura. That was somewhat of a surprise since it was thought that they would try to gain the intention of the Uchiha boy who was currently leaning against the wall of the building.

When they were coming over it was notice that Ino was in a better shape then her female friend. It wasn't much though since there was a layer of sweat covering her forehead. "You're definitely a strange one. You can perform a jutsu like the shadow clone but you can't get up a tree."

"What can I say? I'm just different." replied Naruto while he scratched the back of his head. _"In more ways than you can imagine."_

"Is that just another way for you to say that you're unable to do the simple things?" When hearing that the carefree expression on Nartuo's face turned to one of annoyance as he recognize who that voice belonged to. Not that far away from where they were was Neji Hyuga. With a smirk on his face the branch Hyuga member glanced over to the tree that Naruto had been trying to climb and notice how low the notches that were made. "That's the best you've done? I thought that even you would be able to do better than that. Apparently I presumed too much."

During the Hyuga's taunts, Naruto was clenching and unclenching his hands in the hopes of suppressing the anger that was growing inside him. No one took real notice of what was happening with the blonde. No one that is except for Akamaru who was by the feet of Kiba could sense the anger that was growing. Sensing this, the dog alerted it to his partner who finally took notice of his somewhat friend's predicament.

Taking to some extent how the blonde was acting, Neji decided to go ahead and deliver the finishing blow. "Perhaps you and my cousin are more alike than I realize. The both of you are pathetic and weak."

What happened next was something that no one expected. In what seemed like instant, Naruto had moved from his spot on the ground and was in front of Neji. However, what really caught everyone's attention was that he had his hand wrapped around the Hyuga's throat. The whole thing was so quick that no one was able to follow his movements.

"Who's the pathetic one now?" questioned Naruto. Although his voice wasn't his usual one as it was more threatening and lacked any real emotion except for distain. Neji immediately tried to free himself from the blonde's grasp but found it impossible to do so. It's was about that time that the rest of the class took notice of what was going on.

"Tell me something Neji. With those all seeing eyes of yours, can you see what I'm about to do to you?" With his free hand Naruto turned his kunai around so that the point was facing downward and positioned in a striking blow. "Maybe next time you'll think twice about deem someone as pathetic. That is _if_ you had the chance." As the irritated blonde the outer parts of his eyes started to become red.

Combine that with the seriousness that was behind the previous spoken words an actually look of worry came across Neji's face. Though he tried to hide it what he was feeling he couldn't do so. For those who were witnessing what was happening they didn't know what to make of it but knew that something had to be done before something occurred that couldn't be taken back. Even Sasuke, who was standing back was watching what was going on with a look that was a mix of surprise and intrigue.

Without wasting anymore time, Naruto went ahead and attempted to strike with his weapon. It would most certainly be a lethal one as it was heading for the area near Neji's heart. Gratefully before the strike could make contact someone intervened and put a stop to it.

"Snap to your senses Naruto." instructed Kakashi who had managed to come in and grab a hold of Naruto's arm before he was able to make contact with the kunai. The grip that he had on the blonde was so tight that if there was just a bit of added pressure it would have resulted in the wrist being broken.

Thankfully it appeared like Naruto had finally regained his senses. "W-What happen?" He clearly confused as he didn't know what had been going on. It wasn't until he saw that he had a hand around wrapped around Neji's throat while his other was holding a kunai and being held tightly by Kakashi. Having a handle on what had happen Naruto immediately dropped the kunai as though it had burned him and released his hold on Neji.

Seeing that the danger was now over, Kakashi also let go of Naruto's wrist. "Now, you do you mind telling me what that was all about Naruto?" Kakashi wasn't the only one who wanted to hear an answer as everyone from the class was looking at the blonde in interest and in some cases, alarm.

Overcome by what must've happen, Naruto ran off and continue to run without looking back. It wasn't until he was a few blocks away that he finally stopped as he hid in an alley. _"What is going on with me? If I wasn't stopped in time I may have…I don't even want to think about it. Even if Neji's a jerk there was no reason for me to do what I did." _Staring down at the hand that was around Neji's neck, Naruto shuddered at what could've happen.

Before he could think about it any further, a searing pain was felt in his stomach. Lifting up his shirt, Naruto saw that near his bellybutton some sort of markings was appearing. There was a black swirl and on the top and bottom of the swirl were eight trigrams. Putting that situation behind him for the moment, Naruto pulled his shirt back down Pushing down the pain he made his exit from the alley. _"I need to figure out what's going on with me and soon. If I don't, then the next time I lose myself I may do something that I won't be able to comeback from."_

**00000000**

"Okay. Why am I here?" inquired Shikamaru. "By the way, what happen to you today? You left before classes ended."

"Let's just say that I wasn't up to staying there any longer." responded Naruto in a simple voice.

"Does it have anything to do with what happen between you and Neji in Kakashi's class?" The way that the Nara said it that sounded more like he already knew the answer but wanted to hear it from the source to be sure.

"So you heard that. Not surprising since there were so many there when it happened and that it involved a member of the Hyuga family. How did Hinata take it?"

"She was shocked of course. But Choji and I could tell that she wasn't sure to be worried for you or her cousin. You should probably talk to her."

"I will but not now. Right now though, I have more pressing matters." Taking a deep breath he readied himself to get the point. For the next few minutes Naruto told Shikamaru about all the strange things that had been going on with him. "Also, some strange markings appeared on me and I have no idea what they are. It would disappear in a couple of hours later but I was able to draw it before it happen."

Reaching into his pocket he pulled out a folded piece of paper. Taking the paper Shikamaru unfolded and saw the markings that his friend was talking about. "Let me guess. You want me to try and figure out what this is and what it has to do with you." Naruto would answer by simply nodding his head. "I'll see what I can do but why not wait until Jiraiya comes back to tell you? He'll probably know more about this than I could ever find out."

"Believe me I would. In fact, I got word that he should be back within the week but who knows what'll happen until then. I understand that I've been asking a lot of you since you learned the truth and I'm grateful. I'm just hoping that you'll help me again. You could consider it as another thing that I owe you for."

For a whiel the shadow user seem to be thinking on whether he should help or not. "All right I'll do it. Man, you are really troublesome." Turning around he headed for the door. "Don't think that I'll forget that you owe me."

"I know. Just add it to my tab."

**00000000**

Soon after his meeting with Shikamaru, Naruto decided that he needed to get out some of the pent up frustration that he had from everything that had been going on. The best way that he could figure out on how to do that was by training. So he hurried over to the secret location in the woods so that he could. While there Naruto decided that he might as well work on what he had trouble doing earlier which was climbing a tree with just the chakra at the ends of his feet to hold him.

Took a few hours but it appeared that he had the hang of it as Naruto was able to get up to the top of the tree without stumbling too much. Currently he was trying to improve himself on the exercise by doing something that he saw Kakashi do. That being him hanging upside down on a branch while being charka glued to the branch.

Currently he had been able to hang on for over five minutes but the wear and tear of doing it was getting to Naruto. _"I think that's enough for today."_ He was about to head back down when he heard odd. It was faint at first but slowly the sound was getting louder. _"Someone's coming."_ Concluding that thought Naruto almost instinctively transformed to Fox and tighten his hold on his kunai. _"It's just my luck that I decided to bring only one kunai with me. Hopefully it isn't someone looking for a fight."_

For the next few minutes all that was focused by the demon vessel was the continually growing sound of something approaching. Becoming fed up in waiting; Fox was on the verge of putting whoever it was to the punch only for it to be not necessary as they finally showed themselves.

The one that appeared was a guy who was a few years older than him. He didn't seem all that special but to Fox it was a shock to his very core. Standing before him was a man in a gray shirt with matching pants and a white sash tied around his waist. His hair was black that was neck length, matching colored eyes and there was a scar across his left eyebrow.

Seeing that person really got to Fox as he immediately recognize who the person was. "Y-Yori?" The person was in fact Yori Yakushi, the person that stole the scroll of dangerous kinjutsus and one that he stopped. "It can't be. There's no way that it can be you."

"Why would you say that? Would it because you killed me?" Yori's words struck a cord with Fox as they were the truth.

"I had no other choice. There was no other way around it." It sounded like the blonde was trying to justify why he did what he did. "There was no other way to stop you."

"Who are you trying to kid? You willing plunge your claws into my chest." He furthered that statement by tapping the spot of his chest that Fox plunge his hand into. "The ANBU showed up and most likely would've stopped me. But you went ahead and beat them to the punch didn't you." You could tell that Yori was taking pleasure in the verbal torment that he was giving Fox as a twisted smile came across his face. "Perhaps deep down you wanted to kill me. To have your hand soaked in my blood and watch as I took my last breath."

"No. That isn't true." Fox quickly denied. "I'm not someone who would take pleasure in killing someone even if they deserving of it." Though he tried to dispute those claims he couldn't help but recalled to when he was close to killing Neji in a moment of rage. "All you're just trying to mess with my head."

"You're not sure are you?" Yori questioned only to further his tormenting. "Maybe deep down you know that I'm right. All you are is a monster in human skin."

"NO!" yelled Fox. "It's not true. I'm not a monster." Unlike his recent outburst, Fox's words were becoming quieter to the point that it took an effort to hear them.

"_**Don't be a fool. Haven't you realize that you're being tricked?"**_ shouted some unknown voice.

The sudden hearing of that voice momentarily snapped Fox out of his emotional state. Sadly though that along with his state of mind would cause him to lose his concentration and his ability to have his chakra at his feet to keep him held to the branch. Gravity took immediate affect on him as he started to quickly plummet to the ground.

Certainly the fall would either severely injury him or maybe even kill him. As he fell, Fox managed to grab a hold of the branches that pass him by. However, he was falling too quickly as the branch easily broke and did nothing to stop his falling.

"_I need to do something to slow down or it's the end for me."_ Suddenly an idea came to him. _"Don't know if it'll work but it's not like I have much of a choice."_ Focusing what chakra he had left, Fox focused it in not only his feet but also his hands. _"Well, here goes nothing."_ Driving his hands and feet into the tree trunk Fox hoped that this would slow his descent. As he fell it caused large depression straight down the truck due to his hands and feet cutting into it.

The pain was terrible it was proving successful as slowly but surely he was starting to slow down. In the end though Fox's chakra reached its end as it faded away and with it gone there was nothing holding him to the tree anymore. As a result Fox was no longer holding onto the tree and freefall to the ground. However, to his relief he was close enough to the ground that the rest of the fall was that severe and only briefly lost his breath.

"That was a close call." After regaining enough of his composure Fox looked up to see where Yori was. When he did there wasn't any sign of him. In fact, it looked like he never was there at all. "What the hell? Was it all just in my head?"

The whole situation was really confusing Fox. It didn't help matters when that third voice spoke up when it did. He had no idea who the voice belonged to and what he said. _"What did he mean that I was being tricked? Just when I thought that I would have the opportunity to clear my head something like this only makes me even more confused and stressed out. What else could happen?"_

_

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_

Well, was this an interesting chapter, a weird one or was it both at the same time? Hopefully you thought that the shift of emotions that Naruto did was somewhat unique while at the same time makes you want to know what the reason is. I also realize that this chapter ended in a bit of a cliffhanger but I promise things will be cleared up in the next chapter.

I hope to have the next chapter on around the middle of next month. Not to give away any spoilers but you might be surprise what'll happen because of it. Also, after the next chapter the story will follow how the series went but with a couple of changes of course. You'll have to wait to see what those changes will be.

Before you go please go ahead and leave a review about what you think about this chapter and the story in general. Your opinion will be appreciated.


	14. Deception

Well, here's the next chapter to my story, "One and the Same". This chapter basically follows up almost right after the previous one and also connected with the one before that. So if you haven't read those yes I suggest that you read them before reading this. It'll make more sense if you do that.

Now, not to waste anymore of your time by reading this author note, I give you this chapter. As for the disclaimer, I don't own Naruto.

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Chapter 14:  
Deception

A Week Later…

"I know that it's a corny thing to say but there's no place like home." There on the street was a while haired old man and the creator of the adult book series Icha, Icha Paradise, Jiraiya. Soon after returning back to the village headed for his home that he shared with his young charge. _"Hopefully that knucklehead didn't wreck the place too badly while I was gone."_

It didn't take long for Jiraiya to get to his apartment and when he got inside what he saw was something that he didn't expect. "What are you doing here?" Sitting within the apartment was Shikamaru Nara, a friend of Naruto's. When the boy saw the man he couldn't help but to be relieved.

"You don't know how glad I am that you're here." informed Shikamaru. "You couldn't have come at a better time."

"What are you going on about? I thought that everything would be fine until I returned." commented Jiraiya. "Even if Naruto is prone to do foolish without thinking of the possible consequence he should be able to handle himself." Jiraiya's words didn't seem to ease the trouble look on the Nara boy's face. "What possible could've happen that would have you bothered. Did something happen to Naruto?"

Shikamaru tried to explain but just couldn't get the words out. "You have to see it for yourself." Following the boy, Jiraiya was led to the closed door that went to the room that belonged to Naruto. "I should probably warn you, Naruto isn't really okay." Opening the door they saw that the room was very dim as there was hardly any light coming in. Though that wouldn't really prove to be a problem there was definitely something wrong with what was going on in the room.

Sitting on the bed was Naruto who had his legs brought up to his chest with his arms wrapped around them. The blonde didn't even acknowledge them as his head was pressed against his legs. What made the scene even more troubling was that Naruto was slowly rocking back and forth. It also sounded like he was muttering something but it was too faint to hear.

"He's been like that for most of the week." informed Shikamaru. It wasn't hard to tell that by the look on Jiraiya's face that he didn't like what he was seeing. "During the first few days it wasn't that bad. The only thing that was different was him being a little on edge. But later he became a bundle of nerves. It got so bad that he doesn't leave the room expect to eat something that's not much. It's been a miracle that this has been kept secret all this time. Simply put, this entire situation is very troublesome."

Jiraiya took in all that he heard and was walking over to the troubled boy. As he got closer he was able to finally hear what Naruto was muttering while he kept his head covered by his legs. "He won't forgive me. I had no other choice. I'm not a monster. Why doesn't the voice stop?" Those words continued to be repeated over and over again and there was no sign of him stopping.

"What are you talking about Naruto?" Jiraiya warily asked as he wasn't sure how Naruto would react in his current mental state. When there wasn't any answer he slowly placed a hand on his shoulder. As soon as his hand made contact, Naruto immediate reacted but not in the way that he was hoping.

"Don't touch me!" shouted a frightened Naruto. He would further avoid anymore physical contact by backing away so much that he was actually pressing hard against the wall. "I don't want you to be killed." Not understanding what Naruto was talking about he turned his attention toward Shikamaru to shed some light on the matter.

"While you were gone, Naruto helped to free Kurenai who was framed for stealing a scroll of kinjutsus." the young shadow user explained in a upfront way. "He managed to get the scroll and free Kurenai of the charges. However, in doing so he had no other choice but to take the life of Yori Yakushi, the one responsible for the whole thing." The mentioning of that incident got a reaction from Naruto as returned to the same position that he was in when they showed up. "Apparently it was that incident that was the catalyst to how all of this started."

Jiraiya took in all that was said. He had got an understanding to what may have gone on but felt that there was more to the story than what had been said. Taking a chance he returned his attention toward Naruto. "There's more to this than the guilt of taking someone's life isn't there?" All he got for an answer was Naruto hesitative nod of the head. "Could you say what it was?"

With some reluctance Naruto started to explain everything. From killing Yori, the unexplainable attitude changes, Yori unexpected reappearance, the unknown voice, everything. "Do you still have that paper that Naruto gave you Shikamaru?"

Reaching into his pocket, Shikamaru handed the older man the wanted piece of paper. "Naruto asked me to try and find out what that marking meant and my investigation didn't turn up much." reported the young shadow user. "The only thing that I could find that closely matched it was something about sealing. A sealing for what I wasn't able to find out."

Hearing that and looking at the piece of paper, Jiraiya couldn't help but allow a small smile and chuckle to come out. "You're on the right page Shikamaru. This design is for sealing. For _what_ it's supposed to be sealing, it's suppose to keep the nine-tailed fox contained within Naruto." When the two younger men heard that they realize that it did make sense and felt a bit foolish in not figuring it out on their own. "I saw a similar design that was with your father. Apparently when the fox spirit transfers from one generation to the next so does the seal."

"That's all fine and good." said Naruto. Thankfully it appeared as though he was more composed than he was a moment ago. "But how do you explain it burning when it appeared on my stomach?"

"Perhaps the reason is because it's the first time that the seal ever appeared on your body." assumed Jiraiya who wasn't that sure about it himself. "I mean, it hasn't appeared since that one time has it?" A shake of the head from Naruto was all that was needed for confirmation. "So don't worry about it. We'll deal with it if the time comes. As for now, we should concern ourselves about this appearance from the dead. Now, are you sure that you've seen this Yori guy?"

"I'm sure." reinsured Naruto. "When I saw him I was shocked but it was him. Every time I try to go around as Fox he shows up and if I had the chance to go after him he disappears." Bringing his hands up Naruto ran them through his hair. "Maybe the whole thing is just in my head. Perhaps I'm losing my mind."

"_**You're really are a fool aren't you?"**_ said an unknown but at the same time familiar voice. _**"You still haven't figured out what's really been going on."**_

"Did you hear that?" That unexpected question only confused Jiraiya and Shikamaru. "Come on, you had to hear that. It was clear as day."

"Ah, Naruto. We didn't hear anything." established Shikamaru with confusion evident in his voice. "Maybe you should get some rest. You seem to be burned out from everything."

"Maybe you're right you guys." You could practically hear the exhaustion that the blonde was experiencing. Apparently all of the things that have happened were finally getting to Naruto as he was seemingly about to go out at any moment. Soon as blonde haired demon container fell asleep both Jiraiya and Shikamaru exited the room.

"What do you make of it?" asked Shikamaru to the older man. "What could be that voice that Naruto supposedly heard?"

"Honestly, I don't know." Jiraiya truthfully answered. "Neither of heard anything and we were standing beside him. Maybe he just thought that he heard something."

"Is it possible that he could be…losing it? I mean, the recent events have been stressful. Add that to all the troubles that have occurred after he decided to become Fox, perhaps Naruto has reached his breaking point." From the sound of his voice, Shikamaru didn't want to believe what he was saying.

"It's a possibility." Like with the Nara boy, Jiraiya didn't want to believe what they were talking about being true. "That knucklehead no matter how much he wants to deny it he's still a sixteen year old and all the pressure that he has put on himself will get to him sooner or later. Maybe that time has come. For now though I think that you should go home and I'll do further investigating on what's going on."

"All right, I'll leave. Call me if anything new turns up." Agreeing with that decision the two went on their separate destinations. All the whiling Naruto remained sleeping, completely unaware of the world around him.

**00000000**

"W-What? Where am I?" Getting up to a sitting position, Naruto looked at his current surroundings. No longer was he in his room but in a dank and dreary hallway. It looked to be in disrepair as parts of the wall had broken off and rows of pipes were all about on the tops of the hallways. To add to the strangeness of the situation the entire floor was damp with a little layer of water. "Is this some sort of dream?"

Naruto wouldn't have the time to think about it any further as he heard the faint sound of something. Allowing his curiosity to get the better of him he got up and started to head for where the sound was coming from. After many twist and turns through the broken down hallways it led him to a large double doors that had steel bars going down them. As Naruto got closer it became clear to him that the sounds that he had been hearing were coming from the other side of those doors.

Before he could take another step closer he saw a pair large red staring back down at him from between the bars. Those eyes would be followed by a large grin that showed the fang like teeth. "Step closer boy so I can see you better." Naruto was about to take a hesitative step forward but quickly retreated back as a set of claws came out from between the bars and crash to the ground, mere inches from where he was standing. While the claws were being dragged back they left indentations in the ground.

"_**You're fortunate boy."**_ snarled the thing from behind the bars. _**"Any closer and I would've been able to devour whole."**_ By the way it sounded it seemed like the trapped creature was completely serious with what he had said.

As this 'discussion' was going on, a strong feeling of killing intent and a large amount of chakra could be felt. The chakra was so strong that it seemingly flowed out from between the bars and became like a pool in front of Naruto. It was so overwhelming that it was making Naruto's knees buckle for a bit.

"I-It's you. You're the…the nine-tailed fox." acknowledged Naruto. How he was certain he wasn't certain as it just came to him. "What is this place and how did I get here?"

"_**This is my domain."**_ informed the fox spirit. _**"To be more precise, this is the place that resides within the seal that you have in your body. If it wasn't for blasted one that has been placed here I would've broken free of this prison long ago."**_ The demonic fox was of course referring to the seal that appeared on his stomach but he was seemingly also talking about the thing that was on the doors. Attached to them was what seemed like a raggedy piece of paper that had the word 'seal' written in kanji on it.

Mustering more of his courage, Naruto gave a defiant glare to the giant fox demon. "So, you're the son of a bitch that's inside of me. Is there a reason why I'm here or are you just trying to be a pain in the ass for me? If so then I'm out of here." Naruto's sudden outburst was so unexpected that it actually made the nine-tailed fox recoiled back from the shock. He would quickly recover and started to chuckle.

"_**You're a very amusing human. An amusing but very dim-witted human."**_ The confusion on Naruto's face was all that the demonic creature to realize that his host didn't know. _**"Haven't you yet to realize that you've been fooled?"**_

"Wait a minute. I heard something like that before." It suddenly came to Naruto to something that been confusing him. "You're that unknown voice that I've been hearing lately. All this time, I thought that it was just me losing my mind due to everything that has happen."

"_**Believe me, if I was trying to mess with your mind there wouldn't be nothing left for you to have a coherent thought."**_ The nine-tailed fox was being absolutely serious about what he said. That of course didn't make his reluctant host more uneasy. _**"I was simply warning you that someone else has been messing with you head."**_

"Get to the point and tell me what the hell you're talking about. You apparently know what's going on so go and tell me what it is."

"_**Do you actually believe that you're being hunted by the dead body of Yori Yakushi?"**_ That question put a hold to whatever Naruto was going to say in retaliation. _**"That poor soul is nothing more than a pawn. Even when he was said to have stole that kinjutsu scroll he was nothing more than someone to take the blame for the one who's really responsible for it all."**_

"If you know all of this, then you must know who the mastermind is." Naruto concluded. "Mind telling who it is? Or do we have to play a game of twenty questions?"

"_**Why tell you, when I can show you?"**_ wondered the fox spirit. _**"Wake up and everything will become clearer."**_ With that a flash of red blinded and consume Naruto. As soon as the flash appeared it disappeared and with it so was the blonde haired demon vessel.

**00000000**

Opening his eyes Naruto quickly realize that he was back in his room. Getting back to the sitting position he shook his head to get rid of his remaining grogginess. _"What the hell was that all about?"_

"So you're finally awake." Turning his head, Naruto spotted that sitting in a chair on the other side of the room was Jiraiya. "I was starting to wonder if you'd be waking up anytime soon." Naruto simply looked at the older man in confusion. "You've been out of it for six hours. During that time you were muttering something about 'who was really behind it all' and 'you're that unknown voice that I've been hearing lately'. Mind telling me what that is all about?"

"I'm not sure myself." Naruto answered truthfully. "Is there a reason why you're in my room while I was asleep? Knowing your prevented mind I can only hope that it wasn't something repulsive"

Hearing that, Jiraiya couldn't help but to scoff at the boy. "Very funny, idiot. Remind me to smack you later on." Putting that aside, the white haired man became serious. "I thought that you should know that I discovered something about your 'dead man' problem. I examined the place that you first saw the dead Yori Yakushi and discovered something interesting. It was faint but I found a trace of a lingering genjutsu. Either that means that you've started to practice with genjutsu or…"

"Someone was performing one on me when I thought that I saw Yori." concluded Naruto. "It has to be a pretty good one to make it that convincing. By continually doing this it'll lead me to lose my perception of reality. Whoever is responsibly I'll make sure to make them pay for it."

"How do you propose you do that? Neither of us knows where they could be. And even if you knew where to go how you expect to get pass the genjutsu since it's most likely that they'll do it again to get to you again."

"That's not exactly true." When he heard that, Jiraiya looked at the young blonde in puzzlement. "I don't know how to explain it but I know where they're going to be." Quickly Naruto explained what he meant without saying everything. "Just find a way to break through the genjutsu and I'll take care of the rest of it."

Before Jiraiya had the chance to argue his case, Naruto went out the window and as he was doing so he turned into Fox. Rushing over the window ledge, Jiraiya saw that the young demon host had landed on a neighboring rooftop and was already heading for the specific destination. "That damn idiot! Does even understand what he's getting himself into?"

Slamming his fist on the ledge to relieve himself some of his anger, Jiraiya left the room to do what he was asked to do. _"I need to find a way to get through the genjutsu? I know of a way but I'm not sure if the solution for this problem would lead to even more problems in the long run."_

**00000000**

"Okay, this is the place." Arriving at a place that Fox was familiar with he was in the area that he fought with Yori and it was that place he took the person's life. Nothing appeared to be different from how it was the last time that he was there. Even though it appeared to be a tranquil place Fox knew from previous experience that appearances can be deceiving. "All right, come out. I know that you're here…Yori."

For a while there wasn't any sign of a response being returned as there was nothing more than silence. That would change however when the sound of something coming his way. Moving quickly to the side he narrowly avoided a set of shurikens hitting the ground where he just stood. "Is this really how you plan to fight? Even for you this is low. I guess I was wrong in thinking that you were actually a man."

Fox's taunting proved to be affective as it wasn't long until Yori finally appeared. "Well, isn't this a surprise. To actually think that it was you that would instigate this encounter. Have to wonder though if you're in the right set of mind. I mean, are you sure that I'm not just something that was created in your mind? Perhaps subconsciously you're still feeling guilty for you so willing in killing me."

"Nice try. But that's not going to work this time." informed Fox with complete confidence. "Admittedly you appearing like you did was a shocker. But thanks to some advice; both expected and unexpected, I understand what's going on. More importantly, the one who is really the brains behind all of this truly is." Becoming even more confident, Fox started to pace back and forth before the man before him.

"I should've noticed it sooner but the shock of seeing you made me lose my composure. If I was levelheaded I would've figure something out and the same is happening right now." Fox would then tap a finger to the side of his nose. "I would've realized that you don't have any scent. And seeing as how it wasn't that long ago since I went up against eh real Yori I remember what his scent was." This information apparently was one that he wasn't something that he wanted as his right eye twitch lightly as what was said struck a nerve with 'Yori'.

"But now that I have the opportunity to do so, I'm getting the scent of someone here. It's the scent of someone that I've met not so long ago. It's that same someone that appeared as though they were just an innocent victim during the whole kinjutsu scroll incident." Stopping his pacing, Fox looked directly in a direction that was at the side of Yoir. "That someone is you, Kabuto Yakushi."

The long haired boy's conclusion would be proven correct as the sound of maniacal laughter was heard. "A very clever deduction that you had, Fox wasn't it?" The sound of that voice was all the confirmation that it was the younger Yakushi sibling was the one who was behind it all. "Apparently I took you more lightly than I should have."

Though his identity had been revealed Kabuto remained hidden behind the genjutsu. "Obviously there's more to you than meets the eye. Perhaps Lord Orochimaru was right to have an interest in you as well." Hearing that bit of information caught Fox's attention but kept it to himself for the time being as his unseen adversary continued to talk. "Maybe that's why he wanted me to do such a thing to you. Think about it. Mess with your mind to the point that you weren't enabled to form a coherent thought and making you mentally weak enough to persuade you to join our side. Or mess with your head so much that you no longer were a threat. Either way it would've been a win-win situation for us."

"Well, unfortunately for you neither one of those things happen." Once again, Fox turned his sights directly toward where Kabuto was hiding himself. "Now it is time to make up for a mistake that I reluctantly had to make." That said, Fox headed straight for where he believed that traitorous was. Striking forward he had seemingly had hit nothing but air. Shortly after his strike though the area started to distort and a moment later that distortion took a physical form of Kabuto.

Seeing this brought an instant smile on Fox's face. It would soon went away however as Kabuto exploded in a puff of smoke. "So you can do a shadow clone jutsu. Boy, aren't you just full of surprises." Again Fox tried to pin down where Kabuto was at but this time he wasn't haven't that much success.

"What's the matter? Having trouble finding where I am?" taunted Kabuto. Unfortunately there was no way to find the bastard by where his voice was coming from as it sounded like it was coming from all over the place. "I've concealed my scent to the point that it's vertically impossible to track. So basically you're not able to find out where I am, no matter how hard you try."

Suddenly a shooting pain was felt on Fox's right leg. Looking down he saw that there were senbon needles embedded in his calf. Cursing lightly the long haired demon host pulled out the needles and dropped them to the ground. "You cheap shot son a bitch. I'll make you pay for that." He was about to try and go on the offensive but suddenly a dizzy spell came over Fox. _"What the hell? What's wrong with me?"_

"You're starting to feel it don't you?" Kabuto again taunted. "Those weren't your ordinary senbon needles. They were dipped in chemical that dulls the body to the point that it's nearly impossible to react properly. Even now, you must be feeling the affects coursing through your body. You're probably unable to defend yourself as you should but just to be on the safe side." Once more several senbon needles became stuck in the body of Fox.

"It's only a matter of time until you can even move your body an inch. Lord Orochimaru will probably be a bit upset with eliminating you but in the end he'll get over it. Besides, he still has the person that he was interested in since the beginning so he shouldn't be upset for long."

Though he couldn't see him, Fox knew that Kabuto was positioning himself so that he could deliver the finishing blow. Although he knew this there was nothing that the demon holder couldn't doing anything as his body was unable to do what he wanted it to do. _"Damn it. Move body, move."_ Despite his attempts all he could do was make his body slightly twitch and that wasn't going to do him any good.

Before anything could be done a transparent wave of what appeared to be chakra swept over the area. As it overcame the area it completely destroyed the appearance of Yori and when that happened it was replaced by a person that Fox was familiar with. It was nothing than the cloaked individual that was in charge of the assault against Konoha in the hopes of obtaining the Forbidden Scroll.

Apparently this unexpected incident was something that cloaked individual wanted as he made a quick get away. Fox instantly wanted to go after him and it was that drive that it allowed him to at least take a step towards where the adversary fled. But the strain of trying to move and all of the chemicals that were pierced into his body became too much for Fox as he started to lose consciousness.

Losing his footing he started to fall to the ground but was caught by someone before he hit the ground. _"I mustn't pass out. I mustn't pass out."_ Those words continued to repeat in the head of Fox he finally gave into unconsciousness.

**00000000**

"He's starting to come to." Slowly opening his eyes, the young demon host saw that he was back at home. Sitting up he saw that he was on the living room couch. Regaining more of his bearings he saw that he had returned to being Naruto. "Good to see that you're finally awake." Looking across the room he saw Jiraiya sitting in a chair.

"You were out of it for a few hours. Shortly after passing out you changed back." the man answered some of the questions that his blonde haired charge wanted to ask. "I was starting to wonder if you needed to be checked out by a medical specialist."

"Was probably a good idea that you didn't. Most likely it would've lead to unwanted suspicion about me. That is of course if they happen to find out what's inside of me." Stretching out a nasty kink that was in his neck, Naruto decided to get back to business. "By the way, thanks for saving me back there. If you didn't break that genjutsu I surely would've been dead now. How did you do it by the way?"

In what came as a surprise, Jiraiya actually seem reluctant to say anything. That only made the young man to get a little uneasy as it was accustom for him to go right ahead and say it without the slightest bit of hesitation. "To be honest, it wasn't me who did it. It was someone else."

Not liking what it was leading to, Naruto took a moment to calm down before he said something that he may regret later. "Mind telling who that person was?"

**00000000**

"I was starting to wonder when you would show up." Standing at the open doorway was a very composed Naruto. Immediately after Jiraiya told who was the person who helped him stopping that genjutsu he went to the person's house to talk to them personally. "My as well come inside. What you want to discuss with me is something that you don't want to be heard by any unwanted eavesdropper."

Giving no sign of hesitation Naruto walked inside the person's home. Once inside he didn't take his eyes off the person and continued to follow the person's movements until they sat themselves down in a chair. "So, should we get the reason why you're here?"

"That's probably a wise decision." Naruto calmly replied. "Do you mind telling me what you plan on doing now that you know my secret?" Though he didn't show it, he was worried about what the answer could end up being.

"You mean that you're in fact you have a demon fox spirit sealed inside you and that you've become Konoha self proclaimed protector, Fox?" It was almost unsettling at how the person said such a thing so casually. "You don't need to worry. I don't plan to divulge any of your secrets."

Unable to stop himself, Naruto let out a small sigh of relief. "Not to sound ungrateful or anything but why not? What reason would you not expose me?"

"Have you forgotten already? It was thanks to Fox, or to be more accurate you, who proved that it wasn't me who stole that scroll of kinjutsus." It was clear that the identity of the person was Kurenai Yuhi. "If it wasn't for you I certainly would've been deemed guilty and be rotting in a cell. Basically I'm returning the favor. Also, you're a close friend to someone that I hold dear to my heart."

"You're of course referring to Hinata Hyuga." There wasn't any question in the boy's words as it was clear that was the answer. "We both care for Hinata deeply and I wasn't going to stand back and let her become upset when you were wrongfully being charged for a crime that anyone knowing you would know that you wouldn't such a thing."

"It's still surprises me that the whole legend about the nine-tailed fox is real and that it currently resides within you."

"Just because I'm the container for the demon, it doesn't mean that _I am_ the demon." Naruto was even more serious about that touchy topic. "I've just decided to use this inconvenience to my advantage. That of course doesn't mean that I don't use it to have unfair help in my training and missions." Having said all that he wanted to say, Naruto headed for the door to leave.

"That's pretty much all that I wanted to say. Well, that and thanks again for helping me earlier. I don't know why but I believe that I don't need to worry about you keeping what you know about me a secret. Who knows, you may prove to be a useful ally down the road." With that said Naruto opened the door and took his leave, knowing that there was another person who he knew that he could trust.

**00000000**

Right after leaving Kurenai's home, Naruto returned home and was prepared to go straight to bed. "So, how did things go?" It was clear at what Jiraiya was asking him by that question.

"As good as to be expected." Naruto simply answered. "Kurenai understands what's going on. I don't expect her betraying us anytime. In a way you could consider the two of us even in the saving department. Now, if you excuse me, it's late and I want to get some sleep."

Turning around, Naruto started to head for his room but that all changed when he heard what Jiraiya said next. "Before you do that though, there's something that I want to say. Are you planning on telling me what really happen there today?" That put an instant stop to the blonde's plans of getting any sleep. "Did you actually think that you would be able to hide whatever completely happened today a secret? Remember, I was there shortly before the genjutsu was broken. So you may as well tell me why I found you at the Yakushi home and why that cloaked individual was there as well."

Sighing to let out the bit of stress that had built up in him, Naruto decided to go ahead and tell him. "I was there to deal with the person who was trying to make me lose my mind and who was really responsible for the kinjutsu scroll theft not long ago." Noticing the confusion in Jiraiya's face he went ahead and further explained.

"It wasn't the older Yakushi brother, Yori who stole the scroll. It was the younger brother, Kabuto. That means that he's also the one who was trying to make me think that I was losing my sanity. What's more, he's the man behind the cloak and the one in charge of that invasion that happened during the Konoha celebration."

Gratefully Jiraiya didn't attempt to make light of the situation as there was a serious expression that was on his face. "If you know this then we should go ahead and alert the ANBU about this. I mean, that's something that they're supposed to deal with after all."

"And how do you think that we do that?" Naruto wondered. "If either of us say what we know without any solid proof two things could happen. One, they'll think that we're making the whole thing up. The other being that they'll wonder how we know such things. That'll just lead to some unwanted suspicion in our direction." Those words thankfully got it desired reaction as it prevented any argument being made. "It sucks but we have to keep this to ourselves for the time being. However, I've got to wonder what he meant by doing it all for someone named Orochimaru."

Unseen by Naruto was that Jiraiya's body stiffening up. "Orochimaru you say? Was there anything else said that was related to that name?"

Not noticing the white haired man's importance that he had in his voice, Naruto merely shrug his shoulders. "Nothing else was really said. Except that apparently that whomever this Orochimaru had gotten interested in me, actually Fox, and someone else. For what reason, I don't know. Do you have any idea what that all means old man?" When there wasn't any answer given he looked up and saw that his guardian was being more silent then usual. "Hey, is everything all right with you?"

"No. Everything's all right. I just I must've spaced out for a moment." It somewhat sounded like Jiraiya was just came up with an excuse for why he had acted like he did a moment ago. "That's enough for now. You've had a very tough few days and you should get some deserving rest."

For a brief moment Naruto was going to argue against the suggestion but that was stopped as a loud yawn escaped him. "I guess you're right." he conceded. "I don't know what tomorrow holds but it can't be as bad as it has been in the last few days." Letting another yawn to come out the exhausted blonde headed for bed. Naruto was so worn out that he didn't even notice the somewhat concern look that Jiraiya was showing.

"_I hope so to Naruto."_ Jiraiya thought to himself to prevent Naruto from somehow hearing him. _"Unfortunately I have a bad feeling that what has happen recently is only a prelude to what's to come."_

**00000000**

"Oh no, not this again." groaned Naruto. The reason for his grievance was what was before him. As soon as he fell asleep he arrived back to a place that he recently became familiar with. That place being the realm that the nine-tailed fox had for himself inside of Naruto's mind. "Is there a reason why I'm here or are you just trying to annoy me?"

"_**I'd choose your words wisely human."**_ howled the fox spirit. _**"Do not forget that it was because of me that you discovered who was behind the scheme against you. A little gratitude should be given I believe."**_ How it was said it sounded like the fox was demanding such a thing instead of just suggesting.

"If that's what you're waiting to here then you'll be waiting for a long time." Naruto snapped back without a moment of hesitation. "Yeah, you did help but you didn't do it for me. You did it because whatever danger that I'm in it affects you as well. Let's also not forget the times that you affected my emotions to the point that I almost killed someone because of it."

Of all the reactions that Naruto could've been expecting the one that he did get caught a bit off guard as the giant fox actually started to laugh. _**"Who are you trying to kind? I wasn't the one who brought those the emotions to the open. I may have added the flue to the fire but you're the one who allowed it to come out. So before you try to pass blame, look toward yourself."**_

Naruto wanted to argue against such a idea but he just couldn't. Perhaps the reason is because deep down there was a hint of truth in those words. "Is that all you have to say? If so I'll be leaving now."

"_**I suggest that we make somewhat of a truce."**_ Such a suggestion was so unexpected that Naruto was unable to hold back the shock that he was showing. _**"That doesn't mean that I'll completely cooperate with you. It's just as you said earlier. If you were to die then so would I by association. All I want to do is make sure that I live long enough so that one day I can find a way to free myself of the cursed seal that has been placed on me."**_ Peering down with his red eyes and with a large toothy grin presenting itself, the fox stare at his host. _**"What do you say? Does the idea of a truce between Naruto Uzumaki and the fox spirit, Kyuubi sound appealing?"**_

There wasn't any response from the boy in question and for a moment there may not be one given. "Perhaps you're right. A truce would be beneficial for the both of us." Walking off Naruto was about to leave but stopped to say something else. "That doesn't mean that we'll be friends anytime soon. Basically we make sure that the one other doesn't die. But know this…Kyuubi. If you were ever to be freed, I would kill myself to prevent such a thing from happening."

Nothing more was said as Naruto took his leave of Kyuubi's realm but still managed to hear the nine-tailed fox's parting words. _**"Brave words, boy. When the day comes it'll be interesting to see if you'll be able to follow up those words."**_

**_

* * *

_**

Well, were you readers surprise by what I did in this chapter? I bet that most of you didn't expect that I would have Kyuubi agree to help Naruto, if only to make sure that the fox's survival is more likely. I'll try to touch on that 'partnership' as the story progresses. Just to clarify something, when Naruto is talking to Kyuubi 'face to face' what he says won't be in italic form. Only when he responds mentally will that happen.

Now, as for the decision to have Kurenai to know about Naruto being Fox, it helped to further connect the two previous chapters and also give the boy another ally. I also took a chance in having Naruto learning about what Kabuto is really like but I have my reasons. Now he won't be fooled by Orochimaru's right hand man. However, Naruto won't know know that those two have a connection with one another for awhile.

A little spoiler about the next chapter, which I hope to have on around the same time next month, will revert back to the actual series storyline but with some changes of course. But that means that the appearances of Fox will be far and in-between for awhile which I hope that you can understand why that is.


	15. Team

After a few original chapters it's now back to ones that reflect what happened during the actual series. Of course there'll changes but hopefully nothing too drastic. Now, here's something that shouldn't come as a surprise but I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Chapter 15:  
Team

"What could be taking so long? This is really starting to become annoying."

"Give it a rest Naruto." muttered Shikamaru in a lazy voice. "Just relax and take a breather." Currently they along with other students were in a class waiting for the instructor to come in and explain why they were there. The classroom was a spacious one as there were rows of desks that went up the further back they went.

While waiting the students were spaced around talking with each other or in Shikamaru's case, catching a few extra bits of sleep. "What could possible be taking them so long. Whatever they have to tell us it shouldn't take this long to do so."

"Please calm down Naruto." Hinata kindly asked. "We've only been waiting for ten minutes. It shouldn't take that much longer."

"She's right." added Choji. "So just take it easy and relax." Of course the Akimichi boy didn't have much trouble waiting since it gave him more time to eat the snacks that he usually had with him.

Thankfully they wouldn't have to wait much longer as Iruka entered the room with clipboard in hand. "Sorry for making all of you wait. I hope that it wasn't much of a bother." A faint sound of someone protest could be heard but it was impossible to tell who it came from. "You're probably wondering why you're here. Well, let's just say that the next few months are going to be interesting for you."

"Why don't you cut to the chase and tell us why we're here?" exclaimed Kiba in an annoyed tone. Apparently Naruto wasn't the only one who had become irritated with the waiting.

"In the upcoming months Konoha will be holding a competition known as the Chunin Exams. It's where our village and our neighboring villages compete in the hopes of being promoted to the ranking above genin, which is the rank of chunin."

Hearing that caused a immediate reaction from those in the room as they thought of the possibilities that such a thing could lead to. One of those people was Naruto who was more than eager to take part in such a thing. _"To have the chance to go against some of the best there is. Sign me up."_

Seeing the excitement on the faces of those in front of him, Iruka went ahead and told them more of the details. "Before that happens you must know that you'll be assigned to a team of three with a jonin being your sensei." Confusion was evident on some of the people there so more explaining was in order.

"Before you can even enter the exams you'll be put on an assigned team and you'll do missions together. Determine on how well the three of you perform during those missions your sensei will decide whether or not if you're prepared to take part in such a thing. If they decide that you're not ready then you'll remain as a team and hope to be allowed in the next exams in six months."

What Iruka said was true as what some of them knew, the team of Neji Hyuga, Rock Lee and TenTen became a team a year earlier but their sensei, Maito Gai had decided to have them wait until they were more ready. "Now if you all remain quiet as I announced what the teams are."

For the next couple of minutes Iruka would go ahead and announce who was on which team. This went on until there were only nine people that were left without a team so far. "The next team will be Shikamaru Nara, Ino Yamanaka and Choji Akimachi." Not really a surprise there since the families of those three knew each other and their fathers were once a team in the past. Perhaps they were hoping that history would repeat itself.

"No. I won't be on the same team as Sasuke." said an upset Ino. As for her two new teammates, there reactions were different. Shikamaru didn't seem all that bothered by the announcement yet you could hear him mumble something about it being troublesome. For Choji, well he seem to not care either way as he continued to much on his snacks.

Ignoring the girl's complaints, Iruka continued with the read out the teams. "Next is Kiba Inuzuka, Shino Aburame and Hinata Hyuga." That was a good pairing as there was a good mixture of power, brains and there overall tracking abilities. In a way it was a well rounded team. As for reactions, there wasn't anything to take notice of from Kiba or Shino but the same couldn't be said for Hinata. She appeared to be not all that happy about being in a team with people that she wasn't all that familiar with.

"Don't worry Hinata. You'll be all right." reassured Naruto. "Those two aren't that bad. Also, don't count yourself short. You're pretty tough in your own way." Fortunately that seemed to ease the doubt that the girl had as she gave him a thankful smile.

Glad to see that his friend was okay, Naruto returned this attention toward why they were there. It was a few minutes until he realize something. _"Hold up. If Hinata already on a team and both Shikamaru and Choji are together on another, then that only leave…oh, son of a bitch."_ Knowing what's to come, the blond groaned as he let his head drop onto the desk and wait for what was to come.

"Lastly, it'll be Sasuke Uchiha, Sakura Haruno and Naruto Uzumaki." The confirmation of what he suspected only made Naruto more irritated about the situation. He wasn't the only one that wasn't in favor of the decision as Sasuke, though he tried to hide it, was not happy about the idea of the pairing. The only one that even looked liked they were happy about it was Sakura. But that was most likely because she was on the same team as Sasuke.

"Iruka Umino, why am I paired up with him?" questioned a not so happy Naruto. "Couldn't you have put one of us on a different team?"

"Afraid not Naruto." informed the instructor. "The teams were designed like they are so there would be a balance as evenly as possible. In your team's case, we put the top ranked students with the lowest. Get the picture?"

"Yeah, I understand." Folding his arms in front of him, Naruto's irritation only grew. "That doesn't mean that I don't I don't like it any less."

"Be that as it may, the teams are final. Are there any other objections?" No one seemingly had a justified reason against the team pairings. "Then we'll take an hour lunch break then you'll teams will be introduced to your jonin senseis." With nothing else to say, all of the genin there took the break to think about things.

**00000000**

"He's late. What the hell could he be?" asked a very annoyed Naruto. After returning from break all the teams were given a jonin as their sensei to monitor them and leader of their assigned group. An hour had pass and everyone had already left except for three people. Those three being Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura. "If he doesn't show up soon I'll beat him when he does."

"Give it a rest Naruto." exclaimed Sakura. She was reaching her breaking point about the situation as well but was managing to keep it in check. "Complaining about it won't change anything. So simply put, be quiet and just wait. Look at Sasuke. He's not letting this get to him."

What she was talking about was that the young Uchiha was sitting at a desk far away from the two and was merely sitting there, eyes close and arms folded before him. While Sakura thought that made Sasuke look even cooler, Naruto thought otherwise. Wisely he kept his opinion to himself so to prevent suffering the wrath of the pink haired girl. Thankfully the waiting would come to an end as someone entered the room. When they got a look at whom it was they immediately recognize who it was.

"Sorry for the wait. I got lost on the road of life." That lame excuse only caused the genin to grow even more annoyed at Kakashi who apparently was there to be their appointed sensei/team leader. "Meet me on the roof so we can have proper introductions." Nothing more was said as Kakashi took off and not long after his three students followed his lead.

**00000000**

Next Day…

"Here is your test." Opening his palm Kakashi revealed two bells that were tied to string. "You got three hours to take these bells from me. If you don't then you'll be forbidden to enter the exams and sent back to the academy."

"What the fuck?!" Naruto's outburst was a shared feeling from his teammates. He just was more forced with his opinion on what was going on. "We were never told that we had to do a test, let alone possibly being sent back to the academy."

"That's not entirely true. After being assigned it's up to that team's sensei to determine if their team is actually fit to be genins, let alone being allowed to take part of the Chunin Exam." Kakashi explained "To find out, this test of mine is being given."

"But why are there only two bells?" The question that Sakura had was a reasonable one as none of them could figure out the rason behind it. When he heard that question, Kakashi couldn't help but smile which didn't sit well with the three genin.

"It's quite simple.

"The ones that manage to have a bell when the times up will be officially genin and my take the exams." Stopping with his explanation Kakashi took a moment to tie the bells to the belt loop of his pants. "As for the ones who don't have a bell, they'll be sent back to the academy."

Again the three teenagers were shocked by what they heard. They were about to argue against such a rule but were interrupted. "Those are my rules. I make them and you follow them. If you don't like it you can leave." Hesitation was evident on all of their face but none of them appeared willing to leave. "Good. Then let us begin."

That said Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura went to hide themselves in the surrounding shrubbery. While they hid, Kakashi remained in the same place that he had been since he got there. _"Hide yourself until you come up with a strategy. Perhaps these three are smarter than I thought."_ Suddenly one of them made their move. _"Or maybe I spoke too soon."_

Standing across from Kakashi was Naruto Uzumaki who had a smile on his face. "It appears as though I'm going to be the first to take you on. I wouldn't want it any other way."

"You know, compared to the others you're a little strange." The one eyed jonin hoped that taunt would cause the blond to become fluster and lose his cool. That would prove to be unsuccessful.

"You have no idea how true that is." Naruto whispered to himself. Not wasting anymore time he went at the older man with the intent of getting a bell. Right away he tried to grab the item in question but was stopped when Kakashi grabbed his wrist. Following it up he tossed the bewildered blond away.

"Lesson one, taijutsu, hand-to-hand combat." As Kakashi said this he was reaching for something inside of his vest. Expecting him of pulling out some kind of weapon, Naruto readied himself for what could come his way. When the item was revealed he nearly fell over from shock.

"W-What are you doing with that?" The reason for Naruto's surprise was that the thing that the older man had pulled out wasn't any kind of weapon but was in fact a book. To be more specific, a small orange book that he knew all too well. It was one of the Icha Icha Paradise books that Jiraiya wrote. "Why would you take out such a thing at a time like this?"

"So I can read it of course." Kakashi answered casually. He already had the book open and reading a few pages. "It'll give me something to do since you'll just bore me." This time his taunting did the trick as Naruto lost his composure and went after him again. Without even turning his eye away from the book, Kakashi avoided the attempted attacks on him. It got to the point that he had Naruto face down on the ground and was being held down by the jonin having one of his arms bent behind his back. "Nice try but you got to do better than this."

No longer struggling, Naruto surprisingly smiled over to the opposition. "I guess you're right." That said the body of Naruto vanish in a cloud of smoke. Surprise was evident on Kakashi's face as he had no clue where he could've gone. He would find out where he went as the blond appeared from the shrubbery and the same trademark smile was on his face. "Apparently I need to step up my game."

**00000000**

As that whole situation was going, the two other genins was hiding themselves. From their respective hiding places they watched what went on between their teammate and sensei. From what took place it resulted in different reactions from it.

Sasuke was shocked but at the same time angry. Angry that someone who he considered as a person who lacked any real talent was managing to handle himself against someone who was better that originally thought. Though Naruto had let to even get close to grabbing one of the bells he was able to get the upper hand from time to time. _"How good are you really, Naruto?"_

**00000000**

"_What is going on?"_ muttered Sakura softly from where she was hiding. Unlike Sasuke, she had a better vantage poi8nt to see what was happening. While Kakashi having the upper hand for the majority of the scuffle wasn't that much of a surprise but what was a surprise was the move that Naruto preformed a few moments ago.

"_How can Naruto perform the shadow clone jutsu?"_ Try as she might Sakura couldn't come up with a reasonable excuse. "It doesn't make any sense." So consumed with such thoughts she failed to notice the presence of someone. When Sakura finally did she turned around, ready to defend herself if needed. She wouldn't have a chance though as the person got to her and covered her mouth before she had the chance to even scream.

"Calm down." instructed the person. Thankfully a few moments of struggling, Sakura calmed down. "Good. Now listen very carefully. I want you to do exactly as I say."

**00000000**

"Apparently I need to step up my game." Naruto couldn't help but to bounce from one foot to the other in anticipation. "Come on, let's go." Seeing such enthusiasm from the boy, Kakashi couldn't help but be amuse.

"You sure are a surprising boy." All that was given as a response was Naruto smiling. "I guess what Anko said was true. You're able to do the shadow clone jutsu. That was something that I didn't expect from any of you."

"Expect the unexpect4ed. That's a good way to explain it when it comes to me." Soon the carefree look on Naruto's face changed to one of more seriousness. "Now let's go ahead and resume our fight. After all, there's a time limit for this."

Once again the two of them went at each other. However, unlike last time, Naruto was being more defensive instead of his straight forward style. _"What is he up to?"_ pondered Kakashi. _"This is completely different than how he was before."_ The situation gained enough of the jonin's interest that he put his book away. _"And I was just getting to the good part."_

"_Okay. It's time to put my plan into action."_ Again Naruto charged at the man. When he was only a few feet away he leapt into the air, in what appeared to be for an airborne attack. Instead of going for an aerial attack as expected he mocked his opponent by sticking his tongue out to him.

Such a move was so surprising that it made Kakashi let his guard down. That would prove to be a bad move as for a second time; Naruto disappeared in a puff of smoke. Mere seconds later, a kunai came flying through the smoke and straight towards him.

Fortunately for him, Kakashi managed to avoid sustaining any real injury. But that didn't mean that he came out of it unscathed as the kunai did manage to cut his arm. When the smoke cleared there wasn't any sign of Naruto and this time there was no sign of him reappearing.

"Not that bad of a move." Kakashi admitted. The cut on his arm was that serious as only a bit of blood was trickling out. "Let's hope that you'll be able to do the same." That comment was directed toward Sasuke who had came out of hiding and seemed ready to fight.

"I'm not like the others." established Sasuke in a monotone kind of way. "I don't need the others' help. I'm able to get a bell without any help."

When he heard that, Kakashi couldn't help but let out a depressed sigh. _"He just doesn't get it."_ "We'll see about that." Much like with Naruto earlier, the jonin went at it with Sasuke, hoping that he'll realize the _real_ reason behind the test.

**00000000**

"Damn it. I hoped that would've worked." Remaining hidden within the woods were Naruto and Sakura. They were talking about what went on moments ago. "I at least hope that it would distract him long enough to get one of the bells."

"We shouldn't be all that surprise. He is after all a jonin and more experienced than we are." acknowledged. "There's no way that we could take him on as we are, no matter how many times we try."

"Then what do you suggest we do? Sit around with out thumbs up our asses?" In response to his words, Naruto received a hard punch from the pink haired girl. Obviously she didn't take kindly to his choice of words. "Okay. Let's list what we already know. Going one on one with him won't work, as I found out. Trying to do a sneak attack like we just tried isn't going to do the trick a second time." Stopping for a moment, Naruto let out a chuckle. "Perhaps the there of us should work together. Kakashi probably won't be expecting such a thing."

Initially that was supposed to be just a joke. But Sakura saw it another way. "You know, that's a good idea. The three of us working togethermay just be enough to go against Kakashi. He'll probably never expect it."

"No. Oh, hell no." Naruto quickly opposed. "You can't possibly be suggesting that I work _with_ Sasuke. Because it'll be a cold day in hell before that happens."

"Face the facts Naruto. The only real chance that we have to get a bell is by all three of us work together." Though what Sakura said made sense the blond was still not in favor of the idea. "I know that you don't like Sasuke but we need his help here." Reluctantly Naruto had to concede to Sakura's request. "Now, we just need to get a hold of Sasuke and get him to go along with the idea."

"That's going to be easier said than done." Naruto was of course referring to the Uchiha fighting against Kakashi. "Apparently we need to make a plan before we do our main plan.

**00000000**

"Haven't you gotten your fill yet?" wondered Kakashi. He wasn't even looking at the person he was asking as he was once again reading his orange book. _"Where does Jiraiya come up with this stuff?"_

"Not by a long shot." spat out an annoyed Sasuke. As for the reason for his annoyance it was because at the moment he was stuck under the ground from the neck down. "Once I get free I'll pass this stupid test of yours."

Sasuke didn't say anymore as Kakashi smack him in the forehead with his book. "You really don't get it, do you? Perhaps you should have your teammates come to help." Suddenly, the sound of something coming toward them was heard. The source of it was a kunai but there was something else that was with it.

Leaping away Kakashi avoided the kunai as it hit the ground. While he may have just grabbed it, the same couldn't be said this time as there was an explosive tag attached to it. Luckily, he got away before the explosion happen. "I guess they decided for you."

In a scene that was similar to earlier, Naruto went after the jonin only for all of his attempts to end up being ineffective. "Damn it, hold still." yelled the blond. He was clearly becoming fed up with the constant evading. "Stop running and fight back."

"If that's what you want." In a blur, Kakashi disappeared in front of Naruto and reappeared behind him. "I'm willing to oblige." Not wanting to do any serious harm he went for a simple chop to the back of his neck that would cause the blond to be briefly unconscious.

Performing the move it was expected for Naruto to collapse to the ground. That wouldn't be the case however as he disappeared in a familiar puff of smoke. _"It was another one?"_ Allowing that surprise to sink in, Kakashi saw that where Sasuke once was there was nothing but a hole in the ground. _"Ah, so that's what it was."_

**00000000**

"What's the meaning of this?" After being freed from his dirt prison, Sasuke was forcibly dragged away by his rescuers. "Why did you drag me away?"

"Because we need some place private to talk." answered one of his rescuers, Sakura. "We need to think of something if we wish to pass this test."

Sasuke clearly didn't like that answer as he prepared to leave. "I don't have time for this. I'll do better on my own and not having you guys slowing me down."

"Yeah, you were doing a good job on your own so far." voiced the third person there, Naruto Uzumaki. "Unless you like being in the dirt, you weren't fairing that well against Kakashi." There wasn't any kind of taunting from Naruto as he was merely stating a fact.

"Shut up!" Sasuke quickly retorted. He didn't really like hearing what the blond had to say. The reason was that it had been the truth. "You think that you did any better when you went against him? As I remember you didn't have that much success."

"You don't see me denying it? If it wasn't for me using my shadow clones I would've been beaten sooner." Getting that out of the way, Naruto became completely serious. "Now sit your ass down so we can come up with a plan or I'll make you sit down."

For a moment the Uchiha was going to go against the not so subtle request but went ahead and retook his seat. "All right, we need to figure something out because with the exception of shot that Sakura managed to get we haven't had that much success." For that moment the three of them worked on coming up with some sort of plan.

Unknown by any of them was that the whole thing was being seen. Hidden in a tree that was a safe distance away was Kakashi Hatake. _"Apparently they're finally starting to understand what this whole test was about."_

**00000000**

"Okay, all of you remember the plan?" Sakura's question was answered by both boys nodding their heads. "Good. Then let's get ready." Separating the three of them got into position as quietly as possible so not to alert Kakashi who was sitting on a tree stump in a clearing as he read his book. Silently counting down they set their plan into motion.

First up was Sasuke who immediately threw two shurikens at the one eyed reader. Without even turning away from his book Kakashi managed to catch both of them with one hand. "Good try." Dropping the shurikens he reached behind him and grabbed something even though there was nothing to be seen. "Especially since it was only meant to be just a distraction."

Being caught the thing that Kakashi had seemingly grabbed became visible. When the thing was fully seen it was revealed to actually be someone. That someone was Sakura Haruno who was being held in the air by the back of her shirt collar.

"A genjutsu to make yourself invisible and having Sasuke distract me so you could sneak up on me." All the jonin got as confirmation in his assumption was a sheepish look on Sakura's face. "That's something to be expected from someone who was one of the smartest of her class." Before anything else could be said, the third and final genin of the team decided to make his presence felt.

Attacking from behind Naruto fried a kunai at Kakashi's back. Unfortunately it didn't reach its target as the man let go of Sakura before disappearing and reappearing behind him. The move was so sudden that the blond was unable to avoid the kick that sent him tumbling a few feet away. "When are you going to learn Naruto? A move like that at your present level won't work on me."

"Then I guess I'll have to do something new." With a smile on the blond's face he started to do a series of hand signs. Recognizing the pattern, Kakashi became slightly concern.

"_It can't be. It's impossible. There's no way that someone like him could do such a move."_ Those thoughts would prove to be wrong as the boy completed the hand signs.

"Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu." Spewing from Naruto's mouth was a fireball that was slightly bigger than a basketball and it was heading straight for the shock jonin.

Luckily for Kakashi he recovered from the shock and get out of harm's way before the fireball was able to hit him. He would reappear behind Naruto again. Not falling for the same move twice the blond went for a back elbow but it was blocked and his arm was bent behind his back. Giving Naruto's a good twist, which made the boy to groan in pain before being pushed over to the other two genins.

"Nice try you three. All three of you were very impressive." Kakashi was being completely honest. "Unfortunately it was for not and you only have a few minutes left to complete this test or you fail. I guess your plan, while clever, proved unsuccessful." It was then that he notice that all three members of the team smiling. "What's going on? Why are you smiling?"

"Maybe it has something to do with this." said Sasuke. Or it appeared to be Sasuke as both he and Naruto became covered in a cloud of smoke. When they disappeared Kakashi got a surprise as both of them seemingly switch places, or so it appeared.

He wouldn't have long to think about it as something grabbed him from behind. Or perhaps to be more precise, felt someone grabbing him. Looking back, Kakashi saw that the one who had him was another Naruto. Obviously it was one of the boy's shadow clones. He tried to shake the clone off but was unable to do so since it had both of its hands and legs wrapped around his body.

Kakashi couldn't figure out what the reason was behind doing such a move. Maybe it was meant to simply hold him so one of the three genin could go after the bells. That theory would go out the window as all three of them distance themselves from their sensei. This only confused the jonin as he couldn't understand what was going on. It wasn't until he managed to see a piece of paper underneath the clone's sleeve that he got a good idea.

Understanding what most likely what was going to happen, Kakashi struggled even harder but wasn't able to get free. Add to the fact that he was unable to move his arms all that much made the situation even more difficult.

"Want to know something Kakashi Hatake?" questioned the Naruto clone. "If you're going to go out, why not go out with a bang." As if to signal for it, the paper bombs that were attached to the clone went off and when they did it consumed the clone as well as Kakashi in an explosion. Soon the smoke cleared and all that was left was a small crater and a very battered Kakashi that wasn't showing any sign of getting up.

"Maybe you over did it with that move Naruto." remarked Sakura. Both she and her teammates were slowly making their way over to their fallen sensei. "It's a surprise that nothing was blown off."

"Hey, that's what they call a necessary risk." argued Naruto. "Any less may of given him the chance to escape. Besides, he's still breathing, barely but breathing."

"Shouldn't we go ahead and get the bells?" reminded Sasuke. "You know before he has the chance to come to." That got them to focus back on why they were there. They were about to grab them but before they could Kakashi vanished in a familiar cloud of smoke. "It was a shadow clone the entire time?"

"Yes it was confirmed Kakashi. He had appeared behind them and he didn't look as bad as he had been moments ago. "I must admit that you almost had me there." While the praise was appreciated, it quickly went down the drain as the sound of an alarm going off was heard. Immediately all of them knew what that meant. "I guess time's up. The test is over."

When hearing that, all three genins knew what was to come. "Well, what are you waiting for? Say it already." Naruto's words were similar to how the two other members were thinking.

"Oh, but of course." Kakashi spoke as though he just remembered that fact. "After everything that I saw here I have to say that the three of you…have passed." Of all the things that were expected to be heard that wasn't one of them.

"Could you repeat that again?" requested Sakura who was the first to get over the shock of what was just said. "How could we have pass? None of us were able to get a bell."

"That may be true. But you accomplish the _real_ meaning behind my test." Getting only confused looks from the three of them, Kakashi went ahead and explained. "You worked as a team, which was the rue purpose to all of this." There still seemed to be a case of confusion so apparently a slight demonstration was needed. "Take this for example."

Once again Kakashi disappeared before their eyes. He would reappear by getting behind Sasuke and put a kunai to his throat. "Sakura, kill Naruto or Sasuke dies." Before any reaction could happen he released his hold and walked in front of them. "Its things like that you may come across while performing a mission." It seemed that the three of them finally understood what was being said.

"When something like this happens you're suppose to continue with the mission and complete it, no matter the cost. Personally, I believe that anyone willing to abandon their comrades is lower than trash." Getting away the seriousness for the time being, Kakashi went ahead and said something that would hopefully lighten the mood a little. "That's enough of that for now. Tomorrow we start missions as an official team."

**00000000**

A Week Later…

"For the love of God, give us a better mission." pleaded Naruto. "I swear if you give us a mission to find that damn cat again I'll tie it to the tallest tree in Konoha. That's of course if I'm in a good mood." Naruto's rant, though shared by his fellow teammates, caused them to become very annoyed with him because he was doing it in front of the Hokage.

"Show some respect Naruto." demanded Iruka who was sitting beside the Hokage. "You know that people who are starting out like you are received missions like this. They are to help develop your abilities and improve on your teamwork with your team."

"Well, not to sound offensive but these missions are doing shit."

"_How can you not take offense to something like that?"_ thought Sakura to herself. _"If we get in trouble cause of him I'll beat him to a pulp."_

"Look, what I mean is that we need is a challenge." The calm and simple tone that Naruto was talking with caught those around by surprise and prevented a retort from being made. "Our abilities are just being wasted by doing things like babysitting, delivering groceries or weeding gardens. All we're asking is a mission that'll actually give us a challenge."

"_He does have a point."_ agreed Sasuke to himself. Though he wasn't about to tell the blond such a thing.

"_I'm so going to get it later."_ groaned a depress Kakashi who had a feeling what the reaction was going to be from his student's outburst. _"There goes any chance to read my book."_ To his relief but surprise, there was a smile that came over the Hokage's face.

"Ah, so the boy wants to prove that he's no longer a child." There wasn't any hostility in the old man's voice. Actually, it sounded as though he found it a bit amusing. "Then I guess it'll be all right to let you have a C-rank mission." You could see the immediate happiness that Naruto received from hearing that as he would've bounce happily if it wasn't for Kakashi grabbing the back of the boy's jacket.

"However, I insist that the mission should be performed by two teams instead of one. Therefore, I've already arrange for another team to be a part of it. You can come in now." Opening the door the mentioned team entered. "Say hello to the team that'll be working with you."

"Well, I'll be damned. This is a surprise." Entering the room was the team of Kiba, Shino and Hinata. Right behind them was there jonin sensei, the genjutsu mistress, Kurenai Yuhi. "This'll definitely be an interesting mission."

"You got that right." agreed Kiba. He clearly was as eager about what they were going to do. "Igess you guys must've been doing a good job as well to be a part of a high ranked mission. I mean, why else would we have it?"

"Maybe you complaining until it was given had something to do with it." remarked Shino in a casual way. The way that he said it was almost as though he was saying the simplest thing in the world. Of course, his words didn't sit well with teammate.

"You know you really get on my nerves bug boy." For his part, Shino didn't seem all that bothered by that insult. That only helped to further the annoyance that Kiba had for the other member of his team.

"Please, no fighting." implored Hinata. She was obviously trying to be the peacemaker of the group and clearly it wasn't the first time that she did such a thing.

"_I guess we're not the only team that fights."_ evaluated Sakura. Apparently she found the situation funny as a small smile came over her face. She wasn't the only one who thought so as Naruto was holding in a laugh.

Seeing how everything was going out of control the Hokage decided to get everyone's attention back to the reason why they were there. "The mission that you have is you escorting a bridge builder back to the land of waves. The client is actually supposed to be arriving shortly."

Almost as if calling for it the door opened and a man came in. He was in his fifties with slightly grayed hair and beard with small framed glasses. In his hand was a bottle of some kind of alcoholic drink. "What is this? This is my protection? They don't seem all that special. Especially the one dressed in the orange."

It took about two seconds for Naruto realize that it was him that the man was referring to. Immediately taking out a kunai he went after him. "I'll kill you."

Thankfully the blond was stopped before he could accomplish his threat as Kakashi grabbed the back of his jacket. "You can't kill him. He's our client." To the relief of those there Hatake's words got through to Naruto as he stopped with his struggling.

"Apparently I must've struck a sore spot." taunted the bearded man as he didn't seem to be all that bothered by the scene before him. "The name's Tazuna. Make sure that you do your best to keep me alive."

"You have your mission." reminded Iruka. "Meet at the main gate this time tomorrow to head out. Is that understood?" All of them gave the nod of confirmation. "Then you are dismissed and good luck to you all."

**00000000**

Next Day...

"Let's get a move on you guys." exclaimed an excited Naruto. Both he and the other members of the team were at the main gate with their client Tazuna. They were all ready to get going and no one seemed more eager to get started than the blond haired demon host. "The sooner we get started the sooner we can get going."

"Take it easy Naruto." said Sakura in hopes to calm his regular teammate down. "There's no need to get all excited."

"How can I not be excited? It's been awhile since I've been able to get out of the village to do anything exciting." Naruto was of course referring to one of his past missions that he had been assigned. When it was all said and done the mission was a success. "So let's not waste anymore time and get going."

"Please Naruto. Calm down." asked his close friend, Hinata. "You need to take it easy."

Naruto was about to make another argument but stopped when he looked into the eyes of the Hyuga girl. It was as though her eyes were asking for him to make anymore of an argument about it. "Fine, I'll relax."

"Could you teach us how to do that?" Sakura half joked about what was seen. Everyone had found it somewhat amusing. Even Sasuke couldn't help but let a small smirk to come out. This of course didn't sit so well with Naruto as he had an annoyed look on his face.

"Man, talk about whipped. Apparently we know who's in charge of your guys' relationship." joked Kiba. What he said only amused the people there even more, though there were exceptions.

One was Shino as he had hardly even moved since they got to the gates. Second was Hinata who was blushing madly from the comment. Lastly there was Naruto who became even more annoyed but a light case of blush came over his face.

"Very funny dog boy. Keep it up and you may find yourself being neutered."

"All right, that's enough." stated Kurenai to prevent a fight from starting. "We should head out while we have time." No argument was made as they left. All of them believed that they were ready for whatever might come their way. Only time will tell if that was true.

* * *

Well, I hope that you liked what I did in this chapter. Why I decided to not switch the teams around is because I couldn't think of a way to rearrange the teams that would make them all that different and doing ones that haven't already been done in other stories. Besides, like the old saying goes, "Why fix something when it's not broken?"

As for deciding to have Kurenai's team go along on the mission to Wave Country, that's my way of changing things. Hopefully I'll be able to do a good enough job with this little twist. That's pretty much the end of this chapter and until I update again, see ya.


	16. Mist

Here it is readers, the next chapter to my story. I hope that you all had a good 4th of a July. With this chapter I now move into the whole Wave Country arc. I know that this particular moment in the series has been done in so many ways and I hope the way that I decided to go with won't be a problem. That's pretty much it so on with the story. Of course, I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Chapter 16:  
Mist

From the time they left the gates Konoha both Kakashi and Kurenai's teams had been escorting their client, Tazuna back to the Land of Waves everything was what you would expect it to be. Nothing happen as they were merely trudging forward while being careful of any possible attack. Fortunately that proved to be easy as all three members of Kurenai's team had a skill that proved useful.

Kiba, along with his animal partner Akamaru were occasionally sniff the area of any scents from possible threat. Shino, who hadn't more than a few words at a time had his bugs senses for any unfamiliar chakra that could be around. If all else failed, there was the final member of that team, Hinata who regularly activating her Byakugan to the scan the entire area. That meant the front, back and sides. Overall, all of their bases were covered.

That of course didn't mean that those from Kakashi's group weren't doing their part as they were keeping their senses sharp so they would be prepared for whatever may come their way. As they continued their voyage it seemed like nothing was actually going to happen. While that was fine with most of them, there was a few that felt different.

"This is so boring. Why can't something interesting happen?" wondered a displeased Naruto. "This is a C-Rank mission isn't it? So shouldn't there be some risk involved along with it?"

"That's not always the case Naruto." enlightened his sensei, Kakashi. "Sometimes a mission that is C-Rank is just someone who wishes for what they want to be accomplish as best as possible. More times than not such a ranked mission can be completely without a single shot being fired."

When hearing that, Naruto couldn't help but show his displeasure. "Now doesn't that just suck? All that hoping for something exciting and then to find out that it would be nothing like that is a real downer." Just as Kakashi was going to reprimand his student for that line of thinking, he was beaten to the punch as one of the other students gave their own form of reprimanding.

"Are you that thickheaded?" questioned Sakura. She followed her words with a blow to the back of the head. "You must be to actually want such a thing to happen."

Rubbing his now bruised head, Naruto just looked at his pink haired teammate with a look that wasn't of anger but more of irritation of being hit. Wisely though, he kept whatever reply that he wanted to say. For those who were watching the whole scene they couldn't help but find it a bit comical as there were those who were lightly laughing from it. Unable to help himself either, Naruto chuckle a bit as well.

"_**I don't know why you associate yourself with such fools?"**_ pondered a voice that only the blond haired demon vessel could here. _**"They're nothing but insignificant humans. You would be better off in abandoning such worthless things."**_

"_Go to hell Kyuubi."_ Naruto instantly retorted to the fox that resided within him. _"I would never betray those who I hold dear to me. If I were to do that I would probably become something that I would hate. I'd perhaps turn into something like you and it'll be a cold day in hell before I allow that to happen." _To Naruto's relief there wasn't any kind of response from Kyuubi. The blond was so focus with his internal conversation that he almost lost sight of a water puddle that was on the side of the road.

**00000000**

"Remember the plan." repeated a man. He had long black hair that read his shoulders and matching colored eyes. He had a faded black shroud that covered the majority of his body except for his head and the lower part of his legs. Other noticeable things about the person was that covering his face was some sort of scuba mask and on his right arm was a arm length glove that had a set of large claws on the fingertips.

"I know brother." stated his partner. Much like his partner he had the same kind of hair except that it was a little spikier and a similar glove only that it was on his left arm. One main difference between the two was that he didn't have a shroud that revealed that he was wearing a gray sleeveless shirt and dark pants. "Attack the immediate threat first before they can react then we go after the target. Once done we eliminate the leftovers. It's a simple yet affective plan."

"Then let us begin." Putting their plan to action the two brothers emerged from the puddle that was passed earlier. Rushing side by side they placed their clawed gloves beside one another. When they separated it was revealed that a large chain was attached to both of them. Their appearance came at a surprise as neither team was able to put up a defense for the oncoming attack.

Following the plan they attacked one of the immediate threats by wrapping their chain around Kakashi. With a quick tug from the both of them the spurs from the chains ripped cleanly through his body. Capitalizing on the shocking maneuver the two brothers went after the other threat by going after Kurenai. History wouldn't repeat itself as she managed to avoid the initial attack.

A mistake that the two attackers was that they focused too hard on the genjutsu mistress that they failed to notice that Sasuke coming from behind and throwing a shuriken and a kunai right after. The two weapons would hit their target as they cause the chain to become stuck in a tree. With that weapon no longer useable the two attackers detached it from their gloves and separated but where heading for the same direction. That direction led straight toward the bridge builder, Tazuna.

While their path was clear for them it quickly changed as both Kurenai and Kiba stepped in front of them. This wouldn't slow them down as both brothers continue to charge forward. With both of their claws raised they swept them at their obstacles. Neither would hit their desired targets as both sensei and student avoided the attempted strikes and capitalizing by striking back with blows of their own.

Regrouping quickly the brothers once again charged forward but with one following behind the other. When the one in front reached them again he tried to attack both of them which didn't get much of a difference from the previous attempt. This only a diversion as the other attacker leapt over them and went after Tazuna as there wasn't anything in his way.

In a quick precise move he drove his claws straight into the bridge builder's gut. It appeared as though that was the end to Tazuna but that went out the window as a smile came over the older man's face. "I fooled you." In a puff of smoke Tazuna was replaced by Naruto. The hyperactive blond wouldn't be there for long as he too disappeared in another puff of smoke.

"What the hell?" the confused attacker asked to himself. He wouldn't have that much time to think about it as he was hit in the back of the head. There was so much force behind the blow that it had him take a nosedive to the ground.

"Its impossible." exclaimed the other brother when he saw who took down his brother. "There's no way that you can be still alive."

"Well, I like to surprise people." established the person who made surprise appearance. "I mean what's more surprising then reappearing after apparently being killed?" That just confirmed that the person was none other than Kakashi Hatake.

Being shocked about what happened, the attacker didn't notice Kurenai coming from behind and restraining him with a high tension wire. Moments later his semiconscious brother would share a similar fate and was placed beside his partner. "How is this possible? How did you know about our plans?"

"We didn't." answered Kurenai. "But we suspected something when we noticed something while we were walking."

"It was a water puddle." Kakashi continued where his comrade left off. "It's strange to find a water puddle where it hasn't rained for weeks. We of course were also silently warned about your presence a while ago." Kakashi would take a side glance to Kurenai's three students who abilities proved quite useful. "So instead of avoiding the trap, we walked into it while having one of our own."

Acknowledging their cunning, the more conscious brother chuckled slightly. "Very clever I grant you. I'll remember next time when we see each other again." What he said was further explained as the wire that was binding him and his brother broke. Being the closest, both Kurenai and somewhat surprising Naruto tried to stop them. Their attempts wouldn't succeed as both brothers managed to cut both of them with their claws. Not allowing the newfound opening pass by, the two of them made a quick escape.

"Damn it. We need to get them." Kiba was about to go after the two escaping brothers but stopped when he heard Kakashi speak up.

"Hold up Kiba. Let them go." Though he wasn't his official sensei, Kiba thankfully listened to what Kakashi said. "It wouldn't be wise to go after them without any kind of plan. Also, we were successful in protecting our client."

"Kakashi's right." Kurenai reinforced. "It's all right. You can come out now." From a nearby patch of foliage was the real Tazuna and companioning him was two more of Naruto's shadow clones. When they came over both clones took each other out as their purpose was done. "That was a very wise move in having Naruto using a clone and having it pretending to be Tazuna. It helped to prevent the client from being placed in unnecessary danger."

Before anything else could be said or done, Kurenai started to sway a bit before she fell to a knee. She tried to get back up but incapable of doing so. "Kurenai, what's wrong?" Hinata asked in concern as she quickly came over to the woman's side. She wouldn't be alone as everyone else came over.

"I don't…know." Kurenai answered with a somewhat slurred voice. Her vision was starting to blur and it was hard for her to remain on one knee. "I feel as though I've lost my equilibrium to my body." Glancing over to where her arm was scratch she understood what the cause was.

"There must've been poison on those men's gloves." Kakashi corroborated as he also came to the same conclusion. "We need to remove the poison before it's too late." Pulling out a kunai he made his way to Kurenai. "We have to reopen the wound to allow the poison to pour out."

He was about to do as he said but was stopped when someone unexpectedly intervened. "There won't be any need for that." informed Shino. Going over he placed a hand near his sensei's wound. From underneath the sleeve came a couple of insects and those insects went over and gathered around Kurenai's wound. "Those insects will suck out the poison that's in the body. Unfortunately the body won't be able to perform for a while." Shino's diagnosis seemed correct as slowly but surely Kurenai was recovering.

"That's all that we can do for the time being." established Kakashi. "We should also do the same for Naruto while we're at it. We wouldn't want two people to be out of commission." Everyone turned around to give the blond the same treatment but was shocked by what they saw. Standing in front of them was Naruto and from what could be seen there was nothing wrong.

"There's no need for that. It seems as though my quick healing dealt with the poison before it could take affect." Naruto support his calm by showing his arm that had been scratched and there wasn't any sign of a wound ever being there. While that was the reason that Naruto gave to the others there was another reason for preventing the poison's affects. _"Are you sure that I'm okay, Kyuubi?"_

"_**I'm sure."**_ confirmed the nine-tailed fox, Kyuubi. _**"I've had experienced with this type of poison before and once I've experience a poison more times than not it won't have any affect on me. Apparently that little trait has been passed onto you."**_

"What are we doing standing around here? Shouldn't we get going?" The sudden change of topic got the reaction that Naruto wanted as it got everyone to forget about what happen with him. _"Good. I'm not up for any of them asking questions that I'm not ready to answer." _After a few moments the two teams resumed their journey only this time they were even more vigilant for anymore possible attacks.

**00000000**

"So you were beaten." Immediately after escaping, the two brothers hurried back to their base and reported what had happen in their attended assassination. "I have to say that's a surprise. At the same time though I can't help but intrigued at the enemy. Maybe it's time for me to go ahead and see how good they really are." Grabbing his weapon that was laying at his side the man started to take his leave.

There was nothing said from the brothers as they knew that doing so would most likely result in them sharing the same fate as those that their boss was going to give to their enemy. Not a word was spoken between them but they had the same thought going through their heads. They couldn't help but pity those that their leader was going to meet.

**00000000**

"Everyone duck!" Following Kakashi's command everyone dove to the ground. It was a good thing that they did as mere seconds later a giant clever, identifiable as a zanbatō, flying over them. The large weapon's flight would come to an end as it embedded itself into a large nearby tree. Gazing over to where the large sword ended up and saw that there was now someone standing on the hilt of the sword.

The person was a man who was about the same age as Kakashi and Kurenai. He had short bushy black hair and matching colored eyes. You couldn't see what his face looked like as it was wrapped up from below the eyes and to the end of the neck. His body was somewhat stringy but that didn't mean that he had no muscle. What he was wearing was a bluish-gray outfit that was somewhat similar to a bodysuit only it was slightly loose fit. Along with the outfit were light purple fingerless gloves that ended short of his elbows and similar colored open toed sandals that ended just below his knees.

"I've miss." established the man. Looking down he gave each of them an intense stared. "I was hoping that at least one of you would've lost your head." By how the man said that you understood that he was being completely honest with his words. Leaping down he grabbed onto the zanbatō which dislodged it from the tree before he turned completely around to face the two teams. "I must say that I'm surprise that Gouzu and Meizu were defeated by the likes of you. They must've been sloppy."

Not taking kindly in their early victory Naruto and Kiba wanted to prove the man wrong but where stopped by their senseis and gratefully the two of them collected themselves to the point that they no longer struggled. "Zabuza Momochi, also known as the Demon of the Mist." acknowledged Kakashi. "You're an A-rank criminal from the hidden mist village, Kiri for attempted assassination of your Mizukage."

"Oh, so you've heard of me." Zabuza's momentary self praise was halted when he took a good look at the man who identified him. "Ah, now I remember you. You're Kakashi Hatake, of the Sharingan. It has been said to have copied over one thousand jutsus." The students couldn't help but allow their surprise to show as they never thought the one eyed jonin to be so renowned. "You're in my former village's bingo book."

"So those two that came attacked us earlier were with you." concluded Kurenai. "Gatô must've paid a large sum of money to have you working for him."

"That he does. Therefore that's why I can't allow the old man to live." Strapping his zanbatō to his back, Zabuza started to a series of hand signs. "Hidden Mist Jutsu." Slowly a cloud of mist covered the area. The mist was so thick that it was nearly impossible to see anything.

"Now, which one of you should I take out first?" To make the situation more intimidating, a heavy sense of killer intent was felt. It was so strong that the genin were nearly overcome by what they felt. Even the usual composed Sasuke and Shino were showing signs of being effected.

The mist made it impossible to see Zabuza and it wasn't until he appeared between the genin and Tazuna that he was seen. Quickly knocking all six of the genin away the former Kiri shinobi went to kill the bridge builder. All that stopped that from happening was Kakashi throwing three kunais struck into his chest.

It would seem as though that was the end of the criminal shinobi but that wasn't the case as Zabuza turned into water. "A water clone?" The surprise from that wouldn't last long as Zabuza suddenly appeared and used his zanbatō to slice Kakashi in half.

"One down, sev-" Whatever Zabuza was going to say was left unsaid as the remains of Kakashi turned into water. This didn't seem to surprise Zabuza one bit. "So I guess what's been said about you are true. Even with the mist you were able to copy my jutsu and make a water clone of your own."

Like with Zabuza earlier, it was hard to find where Kakashi was and it wasn't until he felt a kunai being pressed into his back that his location was. "Thanks for the praise but this is the end of you. Perhaps you shouldn't have underestimated your opponent."

As all of this went on the six genin and Tazuna couldn't help but be amazed by what they were seeing. They all realize that this was how experienced shinobi fought. Another thing that was noticed was that Kakashi's headband was had been lifted and revealed that the left eye was that of the Sharingan.

Despite his predicament, Zabuza actually started to laugh. For some reason that laugh didn't set well with everyone there. "Maybe you should take your own advice Kakashi." What he meant by that became clear as the former Kiri shinobi became water. Moments later he was kicked from behind the real Zabuza. Kakashi was kicked hard enough that he landed in the nearby lake. When he reached the water surface he was entrapped in water prison and had no way of getting out.

"Now that you're out of the way for the moment it's time to take care of the rest of the trash." Using only one hand Zabuza created another water clone. It's objective was clear as it started to make its way toward its enemies.

Understanding the danger of the situation, Kurenai tried to put herself between the clone and the worried genin as well as Tazuna. But what she wanted to do and being able to were two different things as she couldn't stand without staggering from side-to-side. _"This isn't good. I still haven't recovered from the poison. There's no way we can win as we are. That leaves only one choice."_ "Everyone, we're withdrawing."

"You've got to be kidding." exclaimed Kiba, being the first of the genin to say something after hearing that. "Do you actually expect us to retreat now?"

"That's exactly what I'm saying." Kurenai answered with an absolutely serious voice. "I'm your sensei and you'll do as I say."

"Well, sorry but that's not going to happen." That retort came from Naruto, who was being absolutely serious. "No disrespect to you Kurenai but I'm not your student, so I don't have follow your orders. Our actual team leader is trapped and I'll be damned to run and leave him for dead."

Unknown to the blond, his words made Sasuke and Sakura recalled something that they heard once before. That being what Kakashi said to them shortly after they passed his test. **"Those who break the rules are scum. This is true. But, those who abandon their friends are worse than scrum."**

"You can go but I'm staying. I've never run before and I'm not going to start now." Taking a few steps forward Naruto prepared himself to fight. While he looked confident on the outside, it was a different story for what was going on the inside. _"Of course that's easier said than done. If I was able to become Fox then my chances on succeeding but as I am not I'd be lucky to get out of this alive." _He was so focused on his internal thoughts that he didn't notice that someone was coming over to him until they placed a hand on his shoulder.

"You really are an idiot." stated Sasuke. "You don't even have a clue in how to fight him, do you?" It seemed like he was criticizing Naruto's intelligence but you could see a slight smirk on the Uchiha's face. "I better help you so that you don't get yourself killed."

"Count me in as well." added Kiba who was supported by Akamaru. "Do you actually believe that I'm going to allow the two of you show me up? I don't think so."

Not liking how things were leading to, Kurenai tried to reason with them. "Don't be foolish. Even if all three of you were to fight you wouldn't beat him. It's suicide."

"We don't know unless we try." conveyed surprisingly, Shino. "All due respect sensei but what Uzumaki is right. If we were to run it would only make us unworthy of even being genin." Hearing the usual quiet Aburame boy speak up, Kurenai tried to have the girl support her thinking but saw that even though they weren't saying anything they were clearly agreeing with what the others were thinking.

"They're all too stubborn to know what's good for them." Knowing that there was no way for her to change their minds, Kurenai tried to join them but once again was unable to get around properly. "Unfortunately, there's nothing that I can do to really help in my present condition."

"Sakura. You and Hinata stay behind and protect Kurenai." directed Sasuke. "You back them up, Kiba."

"What? Why the hell am I being placed as backup?" a somewhat angry Inuzuka. "I'm more than capable of fighting."

"That is why you're going to be supporting Hinata and Sakura." informed Shino before any kind of argument could start up between Kiba and Sasuke. "It would be wiser to have a powerhouse in case something happens." Thankfully that stopped any type of rebuttal that Kiba may have had as he somewhat reluctantly agreed with the assignment.

"How amusing." commented the real Zabuza. He was still had a hand on the water prison that Kakashi was trapped in and seemingly wasn't going to moving anytime soon. Surprisingly his water clone hadn't come over and attacked them. "You think that you're actually shinobi. Don't make me laugh."

"We'll see how funny it'll be after we take care of you." Doing what had become a trademark move of his, Naruto created the maximum amount that he could produce at that time which was four. With two on either side of him all four clones attacked Zabuza's clone. Though the number's game was on his their side, the four clones didn't last very long as they were slashed through by the replica zanbatō.

Though they were taking out so quickly, it did prove to be a good diversion as it temporarily blocked the clone's vision. Emerging from the smoke was a fireball that was about twice the size of a basketball that went flying toward the Zabuza water clone. While the move came as a surprise it wouldn't finish the clone as it swatted the fireball away with its weapon.

"Is this the best that you can do?" wondered the real Zabuza. By his voice he somewhat sounded as though he felt insulted "I've had enough playing around with you little pests." Following the unspoken command, the water clone charged forward to finish it up but was stopped when he spotted a windmill shuriken flying apparently towards him.

Moments before the large shuriken made contact, it veered to the side and headed for the real person. Zabuza managed to catch the weapon but quickly had to avoid the second one that was hidden by the other one. Thinking nothing of it, Zabuza was ready to finish things when what sounded likely a small explosion was heard behind him. Turning around it was revealed that the second shuriken was actually Naruto with a kunai in hand.

"Surprise yet, you son of a bitch!" Launching the kunai it made a beeline to Zabuza's head. With both hands being occupied the so called Demon of the Mist did the first thing that came to him. Going on reflex, Zabuza leaned to the side and grabbed the kunai with his other hand. That proved to be a mistake for two reasons.

The obvious one being that by no longer having any direct contact, the water prison that was used on Kakashi was disappeared, thus freeing the copycat shinobi. The second mistake was that wrapped around the hilt of the kunai was a exploding note. This discovery was realized too late as the note exploded in his hand. The effects of the explosion became obvious as his hand was badly burnt.

"Weren't expecting that, were you?" asked Naruto as his head emerged from underneath the water. All he got for an answer was Zabuza giving him a heated glare. "If so, then you'll like what's next." The meaning to the blonde's cryptic words would be understood as something started to come from the windmill shuriken and swarm upon his arm.

"What the hell?" When the surprise faded away it was realize that what was coming from the windmill shuriken were a mass of insects. There were so many that soon the insects has covered more than half of his arm As that was going on, Zabuza felt a strange sensation occur.

"You must be feeling the affects of my little friends." commented Shino. Even with the seriousness of the situation the he maintained that same impassive voice. "Those bugs are known to drain the chakra of whomever they happen to fall upon. They'll continue to do so until the person is complete depleted of their chakra or they're removed due to an extreme force."

What Shino had said was correct as no matter what he tried, Zabuza couldn't to get the insects off and the feeling that he had been feeling, which was revealed to be his chakra being drained away, grew as time went on. "You insolent children. I'll make you pay for trying to make a fool out of me." He was prepared to go ahead and do such a thing but was stopped when Kakashi made his presence felt.

"Have you forgotten about me, Zabuza?" Hatake was being completely serious as he knew what was going to be happening soon. "Just to warn you, that water prison won't work on me again. So, what do you plan to do now?" The answer would come as the two of them went at one another in a furious exchange.

It would reach its peak when both of them they simultaneously performed a giant water dragon jutsu. When the two attacks hit one another it created giant waves throughout the lake and carried Naruto far from the battlefield. When the water finally calmed down it was revealed that Kakashi had gained the advantage of the battle. Seemingly the battle was on the verge of ending.

However, the ending did come it wasn't from Hatake. Out of nowhere a pair of senbon needles went flying in and pierced Zabuza right through the neck. Falling like a sack of bricks, the body of Zabuza fell to the ground and showing no signs of getting back up.

Cautiously, Kakashi went to the body of the fallen adversary and saw that there wasn't any life in the man's body. "He's dead." By hearing that confirmation a collective shock went through all those there. Turning their heads to where the needles had come from they saw the person response.

Standing on top of a tall tree branch was a kid who couldn't be older than any of the genins. The outfit that the person was wearing was a loose fit, dark green kimono with beige trim that ended at the start of his thighs and tan colored shorts that reached his knees. He had long black hair with long bangs going reaching pass his shoulders while the back was being kept in a bun. There was no telling what the person's face looked like as there was a white mask covering it. The only identifiable things about the mask was that it had two red markings near the bottom, two slits to see through and the mist village symbol at the top.

"Thank you for beating Zabuza enough for me to finish him." voiced the newcomer. By the sound of the voice it was confirmed that it was a male and apparently _was_ as young as the others. "I've been looking for him for quite sometime but he always managed to get away."

In a blink of an eye the masked newcomer left his position on the tree branch and knelt down beside the lifeless body of Zabuza. "Now, if you excuse me I must dispose of the body to prevent the secrets that it contains to be discovered." With the body in his possession, the two of them disappeared right before their eyes.

"Who the hell was that?" wondered Kiba who was the first one to come to grasp to everything that just happen. He wasn't the only one as the other genins were wondering the same thing. That even included Naruto who managed to get out of the water and returned to the shore.

"That was someone called a hunter." clarified Kurenai. She no longer tried to get up as she was in no condition to help if she tried. "They're someone who hunt after and dispose of shinobi who betrayed their country. The mask design is of the hunters from Kiri."

"Who cares who it was." exclaimed a very happy Tazuna. "The danger is no longer around. So we can take everything easy since there's nothing to worry about." As if to oppose the bridge builder's cheerful words, Kakashi collapsed to the ground and wasn't getting back up. Witnessing this everyone hurried over to the fallen jonin.

* * *

Hopefully you readers like what I did here. It's was a real pain to try and have all the members from both teams involved in this chapter and I hope that the way I did it was good enough. You may of also notice that some of the moments in the fights were similar to how they happen in the manga/anime. The reason being is that I couldn't think of anything as an alternative and also because how things turned out in the series was good enough as it was.

As a little preview for the next chapter, it'll be more of an original one. That doesn't mean that it won't have any connection with the continuation of the story. I plan to have that chapter on sometime later this month, which most likely is what's going to happen.


	17. Preparations

Well, here's the next chapter to my "One and the Same" story. This chapter is a mostly a original with brief moments that relief the series. Why I decided to have them learn the water walking instead of tree climbing is because I briefly mentioned that they learned it during the academy and also because it sounded like something that would be better to do in that chapter.

As for the disclaimer, I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Chapter 17:  
Preparations

Slowly opening an eye the man checked his surroundings. It looked like a simple let cuzy room that had only the basic essentials. Getting up to a sitting position the man placed his head in his hand. _"How long have I been out of it?"_

As he tried to figure that out someone entered the room. She was a woman seemingly in her thirties with long bluish-black hair that reached between her shoulders. What she was wearing was a simple light pink shirt with red around the color and a blue skirt that went to her knees. "Oh, you're awake. I'll go tell the others." Leaving the room the woman went to do what she said.

"You really over did it Hatake." Leaning against the doorway was fellow jonin, Kurenai Yuhi. By what could be seen she had recovered from the poison that she received at the start of the mission. "We're at Tazuna's home and we've been here for the pass day and a half since you passed out." She answered a few of her fellow team leader's unasked questions. "Apparently you used a large amount of chakra during your fight with Zabuza. Fortunately everything has been quiet since then."

"What about the genin?" One of the last things that Kakashi remembered before passing out was that some of them had received a few injuries. Though he didn't think that any of them seemed to have been seriously hurt he had to be sure.

Kurenai wouldn't have the opportunity to answer as moment later all six genin entered the room. From what he could tell that there weren't any serious injuries with the exception of a few bandages here and there.

"It's good to see that you're okay Kakashi." said Sakura. She wasn't the only one who was glad to see that he was all right. Even Sasuke, as cold hearted as he tried to be, was glad that his sensei was going to be okay.

"Don't worry. He'll be back on his feet once he recovers from his chakra depletion. Consider it as a drawback from using his Sharingan for as long as he did." Kurenai informed to put away any of the lingering concerns from the rookie shinobi. "Which hopefully will be soon since Zabuza is still alive."

**00000000**

In a secluded area in the forest was the young hunter shinobi. The person was keeling over the emotionless body of Zabuza Momochi. "I guess I should take care of those needles." Reaching over the hunter was about to pull them out but was stopped when a hand shot up and grabbed their arm.

"I'll do it myself Haku." voiced a very alive Zabuza. Doing as he said the outlaw shinobi started to roughly pull the needles from his neck.

"You should take it easy Zabuza." warned the hunter, now identified as Haku. "Pull those needles like that and you'll be dead for real." Though he was warning there wasn't real concern in his voice. "Fortunately I was able to make it appears as though you were dead so I could get you out from the battleground. However, I must say that because of that and the injuries that you sustained you'll be out of commission for a while."

Pulling out the last remaining senbon needle out, Zabuza coughed up the blood that was in his mouth before even talking. "That's a small price to pay for the opportunity to gain revenge on all of them." It was then that he took a real good look at his accomplice. "Take that damn mask off Haku. It makes me sick just looking at it."

Doing as he was asked, Haku removed his faux hunter mask. Behind the mask was a young boy with brown eyes and an innocent looking smile. "You shouldn't be all that against this mask. It helped to convince them to stop those shinobi and gave me the chance to escape with your body."

Seeing the look on Haku's face, Zabuza started to laugh. Even with that innocent smile there's no hiding the viciousness that you have Haku. You probably even enjoyed it when you stabbed me in the neck." All that was given as a response was Haku's growing smile.

**00000000**

Next Day…

"Here we are. This is the place." After both Kakashi and Kurenai explained Zabuza still alive and that the hunter shinobi actually working together the jonins decided that extra training for the six genin would be useful when round two of the fight came. However, since Kakashi was still in no condition to do anything at the moment, it was up to Kurenai to start things up.

The place that she took the six rookies was at the end of the forest that led to small lake. "Here's where we'll do our training." Turning around the genjutsu mistress looked at the puzzled expressions that were coming from most of the genin there.

"Now, have you all managed to learn the tree climbing exercise that was taught at the academy? All of them nodded their heads in confirmation. "Good. Then we can go on to the next step." Instead of telling them she started to walk to the water. Taking a step on the water it was expected that she would fall right in but instead her foot stayed on top as though she was stepping on solid ground.

Following it up, Kurenai walked on the water until she was standing on top of the water, a few feet away from the shoreline. "Much like the tree climbing, this helps to improve chakra control and also increase your chakra capacity. Does anyone want to give it a try?"

"I'll try." Naruto volunteered. Collecting the necessary amount of chakra to his feet he took a step on the water. Confident that he succeeded he took a good step forward. Soon as he put most of his weight on the foot that was on the water Naruto sunk into the water like a stone. Quickly bobbing his head to the surface, the blond looked at Kurenai through his soaked hair that came over his eyes. The annoyance was clearly seen on his face.

"Don't be mistaken. This is much harder than it looks." Kurenai lectured. She tried to hold it in but a smile snuck itself out when she saw the results of the boy's failed attempt. "You constantly have to adjust the amount of chakra you use due to the constant change of the water's surface."

Spraying the water that was still in his mouth Naruto made his way to lakeside. "I'll be sure to keep that in mind." Getting out of the water he tried to rinse out some of the water that remained on his clothes. How he looked had everyone slightly laughing as the scene was quite funny.

**00000000**

"All right, that's it. I'm officially pissed off." It had been about a day since Kurenai showed the water walking exercise and so far it resulted in a variety of things. Surprisingly, the one who managed to get a complete hang of it wasn't Sasuke but actually Shino. Time wise it took him a little less than an hour to get. Not allowing himself to be outdone, Sasuke worked even harder and two hours or so he succeded. Third would be Kiba who by sure stubbornness was able to learn it.

Currently those three were off training or keeping an eye on Tazuna while he worked on the bridge so that there wouldn't be any attack on him. As for the other three, they were still at the lake and trying to figure it out. While two of them were handling it, there was one who wasn't and had no problem expressing it.

"This is really getting on my nerves." After yet another failed attempt Naruto got back to shore. Feeling even more waterlogged than before he peeled off his orange shirt to the ground, next to his other discarded clothes. At the moment all that he was wearing was his black jeans. That probably would've been taken off too if it wasn't for his present company. "By all the times that I've been underwater you would think that I was part fish."

"Quit complaining." said Sakura who was one of those who was still at the lake. She had been able to get a quick hang of the exercise not longer after Kiba did but she was instructed to stay there and continue with it so that it would help increase her chakra capacity which was smaller than the others. Being too exhausted to continue, Sakura was taking a break by lying against a nearby tree. "You won't get it if you continually run your mouth." She meant no real harm with her words as they were mostly just for teasing purposes.

"Oh, that really hurt." Naruto responded in mocked pain. "Why don't you come here and show me how it's supposed to be done?" Sakura knew that he was trying to goad her as he knew that she was currently unable to try such a thing. Ignoring that she was sending his way Naruto tried the exercise again and actually did better as his feet only sunk into the water a little.

But that bit of success wouldn't last long as he again fell completely into the water. As he was getting out Naruto could hear the laughter from Sakura but ignored it as he began on a mild rant. "Damn it. I thought I had it that time." Calming himself down he decided that it was time for him to do something that he was delaying for sometime. That being him asking for some help.

While Sakura would've been the reasonable choice he didn't want to risk the chance of having her tease him about doing such a thing. So, he went ahead and turned to the next reliable source. "Hinata, could you give me a hand with this?" When he didn't hear any kind of response he looked over to where he last saw her.

He would be correct with his guess as a bit away from where Naruto was Hinata. She was performing the water walking and had been for quite some time. Though the young Hyuga was able to do it she was told to continue so it could help build up her reserves. Compared to Sakura, Hinata's chakra reserves were larger but not by much.

Doing as she was told, Hinata continued with the training exercise, barely taking a break. Even though her determination was commendable you could see that it was taking its toll on her as she was on the verge of collapsing from exhaustion. Just as he predicted, the girl in question started to sink into the water and was making no effort of stopping her decent.

She probably would've become completely submerge if it wasn't for someone coming over and pulling her up by her arms. Looking to her side Hinata saw that the one who saved her was Naruto. An immediate blush came over the girl's face as she realized how close the two of them were.

"Are you okay Hinata?" The girl in question simply nodded her head as she was too surprise by the situation. When Naruto got that confirmation he let go of her. However, no sooner did he let go that she started to sink into the water again and like before she was brought back up by her friend. "Apparently you've exhausted yourself more than you thought. Let me help you there."

Before another word could be said, Naruto picked up Hinata bridal style and carried her until reaching the shore where he placed her back on the ground. "There you go. You should take a break and regain your strength. Wouldn't want you to suffer from chakra depletion, do you?" It was then that the boy noticed the blush on Hinata's face. _"What is that all about? Why is she so embarrass?"_

"_**You really are an idiot, aren't you?"**_ wondered Kyuubi. By the tone it sounded like the demon fox found whatever he wanted to say to be amusing. _**"Take a good look at the predicament that the two of you are in."**_ Doing as suggested, Naruto saw that he was still shirtless and recalling when he actually was carrying Hinata brought a blush to his own cheeks.

The situation would only become more embarrassing as Sakura decided to add her two cents in. "Aw, that was so sweet. I only wish that Sasuke would do something like that for me." This just caused the two friends to blush even more.

Naruto was going to dispute what was being insinuated when he notice something. Throughout the entire situation he had been standing on the water surface and wasn't wavering at all. Realizing what that meant, Naruto started jumping about in excitement. The quick change of attitude had an unforeseen benefit as it caused everyone to forget about the embarrassing incident from moments ago.

**00000000**

Next Day…

"Thank you. Please come again." Leaving the grocery store, Tazuna headed for his home with Sakura and Shino, who were acting as bodyguards, following close by. Though they just got groceries they didn't get much as there wasn't that big of a selection because of what was going on with the Land of Waves.

The stores weren't the only one that were suffering as throughout the streets there were people begging for money or more to the point, food. There were of course some who were willing to do work for it but they were pretty much the same. It was a hard thing to see for the two younger teenagers as it was something that they weren't use to.

It didn't help matters when a young girl bumped into Sakura. When the child smiled kindly at her and having her hands present before her crumbled any resolve that Sakura had. Reaching into her pocket the pink haired girl pulled out the candy bars that she had on her and gave it to her.

"That was a nice gesture that you did there." Shino commented. It came somewhat of a surprise since it was the first time he said anything in quite some time. "This is a hard thing to witness." From the tone of voice you could tell that the bug user was angry by such a situation.

"This is how it's been since Gatô arrived." Tazuna acknowledged while they continued their trek back to his home. "That's why the bridge needs to be completed so that our home will have the chance to come alive again." Though nothing was said both Sakura and Shino vowed to do all they could do to make such a thing would happen.

Soon they arrived at Tazuna's home. Going in they were greeted by his daughter Tsunami and Hinata who was helping her around the house. "Welcome home." Tsunami greeted kindly. "It's good to see that you came back safely."

"Where is everyone?"

"They're out training." answered Kakashi. He was recovering nicely but needed crutches to get around. "They've been out since early this morning. In fact, Hinata was doing the same thing until she came back an hour ago." Looking at the Hyuga girl more closely it was apparent how messed up her clothes were that she had really pushed herself.

"I'll be going out." informed Shino from out of the blue. "I'll be back around dinner." Having said that he turned around and headed out. Knowing what he was going to do, Sakura returned her attention to her teacher.

"Kakashi, please train me." Even though it couldn't be seen, you could tell that the jonin was smiling from behind his mask.

**00000000**

"Is that the best you got?" asked Kiba tiredly. He was breathing heavily but staring confidently at his opponent. "I thought that the Uchihas were supposed to be incredible fighters."

Standing opposite of the Inuzuka boy was Sasuke who was clearly exhausted as well. For the past couple of hours the two of them had been sparring with each other. Nothing too lethal, mostly it was just taijutsu. "You've seen nothing yet. You may as well have your dog join in." He was of course referring to Akamaru who was sitting a bit away from the sparring match. "You'll need all the help that you need."

With a toothy smirk, Kiba went into a fighting stance. "No offense to my partner but I don't need his help dealing with you. After all, not long ago you were defeated by Naruto." The recalling of that incident seemed to be a sore spot for Sasuke. Going into a fighting stance as well the two of them went at each other again, only more intense than before.

**00000000**

"You can quit hiding now. I know that you're there." Alone in another part of the forest was Naruto. He was about to resume whatever he was doing but stopped when he felt the presence of someone. There wasn't any sign of someone actually being there but appearance can be deceiving. "If you're not going to show yourself then I guess I'll have to do it for you." Rushing to one of the trees Naruto was about to drive a kunai into the tree.

Before Naruto could make contact however a hand came out and grabbed his arm. Slowly emerging from the tree was Kurenai. "I wondered if you would be able to find me while I was under a genjutsu and I guess I got my answer. Perhaps your senses are slightly keener than Kiba's."

Freeing his arm, Naruto took a few steps away from the woman. "That's really saying something. After all, the Inuzukas are known as some of the best trackers in Konoha. Then again, it could be thanks to being a host to a fox spirit." The mentioning of that put a damper mood to the area. "But that doesn't mean that I don't have my own way of handling things."

"If you don't mind me asking Naruto but why haven't you become Fox?" Kurenai's question was a real shocker as it was something that he didn't suspect to be asked. "Certainly transforming to him would make things easier."

"Maybe it would but I won't." Naruto answered calmly. "Fighting as Fox would only lead to more trouble. Seeing me in my other form may make the others suspicious of why he would be here. That's something that I wish to avoid at all cost."

"Smart thinking. Apparently you're smarter than you're given credit for." There wasn't any attended insult in what Kurenai said. In reality it was more of a compliment. "Do you want some help in your training?"

"Thanks for the offer but no." Naruto gracefully declined. "This is something that I prefer to do on my own." Accepting that, the jonin said goodbye before leaving. "Now it's time to get to work." Reaching into his inner coat pocket the blond pulled out a small scroll. Unrolling the scroll he started to read it all the while recalling the discussion that he had with Jiraiya before leaving.

**00000000**

Flashback…

"What is this?" asked Naruto. He was packing up for his mission when a scroll was tossed to him. Standing at the doorway to his room was Jiraiya.

"Just something that you might look over you got the time." the older man cryptically informed. "Probably after a bit of training it could become something that could prove to be useful to you later on."

Taking a quick look at what was in the scroll; Naruto glanced back at his perverted godfather. "All right, I'll give it a shot. But couldn't you tell me how to do that move that I used against Youta and Ami? You know that ball of chakra that formed in my hand. That's a move that I'd like to learn."

"Absolutely not." Jiraiya stated with complete seriousness. That shocked Naruto as he didn't expect such a serious reply. "You're not skilled enough to handle such a move. How you were able to do it that one time is beyond me." Calming himself down, Jiraiya took it down a bit. "Look, just learn what's in the scroll then maybe when I feel that you're ready I'll teach you that move."

End of Flashback…

**00000000**

"Here goes nothing." Biting one of his thumbs to the point that blood came out, Naruto did a serious of hands gings before slamming a hand to the ground. "Summoning Jutsu." Smoke shot from the ground and when it went away he got a surprise.

In front of the blond was a toad that was tall enough that it reached just pass his ankles. It had light yellow skin with pale orange around the eyes and chest. To top it off, the toad was wearing a blue vest. _"You got to be kidding me."_ Naruto couldn't contain his shock by what he summoned. _"I thought Jiraiya said that this jutsu would be useful. He must've been joking. He's probably laughing about this at this very moment."_

It was around this time that the toad notice of the person who summoned him. "Hello. Name's Gamatatsu. Do you have any sweets?" From his tone and the expresson on his face, the toad was seemingly a simple minded one.

"No. I don't. Just go back where you came from." Without any kind of argument, Gamatatsu vanished in a bundle of smoke. No doubt returning to whatever world that he had came from. "Oh well, might as well try again. After all, it couldn't get any worse."

**00000000**

"You got to be fucking kidding me." It had been a couple of hours since he started but so far Naruto didn't like the results. Time and time again he did the summoning jutsu and every time all he managed to get was a small toad. In fact, he had summoned Gamatatsu four more times and each time the yellow skinned toad asked if he had any sweets. Simply put, the blond haired demon host was reaching his breaking point.

"One more time and so help me it better work." Not needing to bite his thumb as there was enough blood following from them already. Doing a familiar set of hand signs Naruto slammed his hand down and another bit of smoke rose from the ground. When it faded away the boy helped that the results would pay off but when he saw what the result was, a stream of curses soon followed.

"Hey, how's it going?" questioned a toad that was the same size as Gamatatsu and even wore the same kind of vest. The difference being that instead of light yellow it had orange skin and the markings were blue instead of pale orange. "What's up kid? Still working at it aren't you?"

"What does it look like, Gamakichi?" Clearly Naruto and the toad somewhat knew one another. "This is the sixth time that I summoned you and I'm becoming fed up with getting the same results with no sign of improvement."

Doing that little outburst seemingly did some good for the irritated blond as some of the anger that he had to be let out. "For now I think that I should take a break before I lose it." Naruto was about to have the toad go away but stopped when he heard a familiar voice call out to him.

"So this is where you've been." Entering the scene was his fellow teammate, Sakura Haruno. "I've been looking for you everywhere."

"You don't say? Did you miss me that much?" Naruto's small taunt resulted in him getting a hard smack to the back of the head by the girl in question. "Apparently I was wrong. You didn't have to hit me that hard you know."

"Yes I did." Sakura argued. She was still slightly annoyed about what he said but a bit of a blush was on her cheeks. "To think such a thing is crazy. I was merely doing what Kakashi asked me to do and that was to find you." It was about that time that Sakura noticed who else was there.

Glancing down she saw Gamakichi. Becoming crept out Sakura took a couple of steps back. "Hello there. It's nice to meet you.

That only helped to freak Sakura even more than she already was. "Did that frog just talk?"

"Actually, he's a toad and yes he did." Noticing the girl's reaction, Naruto had to smile. "You want to touch him?" When she heard that, Sakura quickly shook her head. "Now isn't this something? Who would've thought that you would be scared of a little toad? I can only imagine what Sasuke will think when he hears this."

His words got their desired response as Sakura went after him to keep his mouth shut. Already knowing what she was going to do, Naruto had taken off with the pink haired girl close behind. As the chase went on, Gamakichi sighed at the boy. _"This is the one who has a contract with us? Pops will sure find this interesting."_ With that the toad disappeared, returning home.

**00000000**

"How are you feeling?" In an undisclosed location, Haku was checking on the condition on the other man in the room. From what he saw the man appeared to be fine but hearing it would be good.

"I'm good." reported Zabuza. To somewhat show his words by crushing an apple that he had in his hands. "I've fully recovered from my injuries. Now I believe it's time that we take care of some unfinished business. Wouldn't you say agree, Haku?"

"Whatever you say Zabuza, I will follow." Haku simply replied. With a stern expression on his face, the boy put on the fake hunter mask that he used before. Clearly the two of them were prepared for an upcoming fight.

**00000000**

"Damn it. I can't believe that they left me behind." Soon after waking up, Naruto quickly discovered that everyone took off without him. He wanted to go after them but there were things that needed to be dealt with. That being taking care of couple henchmen that Gatô sent to apparently take Tazuna's daughter, Tsunami and grandson, Inari hostage.

Fortunately they were quickly taken cared of and currently Naruto was hurrying to the bridge. "I've got to hurry. There's no telling what could be happening to the others."

"_**Then let me out."**_ voiced Kyuubi. _**"Turn into Fox and victory will be certain. It wouldn't matter who they are."**_ While the nine-tailed fox was making some sense, Naruto was against it.

"_That's not an option." _refused the demon host. _"Becoming Fox would just lead to more problems later on. Besides, if I did let you out there's no telling what you'll try to do. You'd probably go after everyone that was there."_ When he got nothing but silence from Kyuubi it was all that Naruto needed for confirmation.

It took a while but Naruto was able to see the bridge in the distance. From where he was he could see that a large cloud of mist had covered the area. "It looks like the party has started already. I may as well make my presence known."

* * *

That's another chapter down readers. Hopefully you like what I did with this chapter and how I set up for the following one. For the reason why I had Naruto already signed the contract to summon toads is because it gave him something to pratice on until I have him begin to learn the Rasengan.

As for why he can already summon small toads is because he's a little stronger than he was at that point in the actual series. Not much but enough to make a small change.

Once again, I hope you enjoyed that chapter and please leave a review before you go. I would really appreciate it.


	18. Snow

Hey there readers. I'm somewhat upset with the lack of reviews for the previous chapter. I don't see the reason but hopefully things will change. Here's the last chapter of the Wave Country arc. I hope you like how it ends. For the disclaimer, I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Chapter 18:  
Snow

"This is nuts." acknowledged Kiba. He was breathing heavily and there were many cuts throughout his body. Fortunately he went ahead and placed Akamaru securely within his coat to help protect his animal parter. "We can't take much more of this."

"Thanks for stating the obvious." retorted Sasuke. The Uchiha was pretty much in the same condition of Kiba and likewise was close to collapsing. There current predicament was safe to say, chaotic. Immediately arriving at the bridge they saw that the workers that were already there were all down on the ground and the area looked as though some kind of altercation had taken place.

What the cause for it all was soon discovered as appearing with a familiar shroud of mist was Zabuza and the faux hunter. They weren't the only ones as along with them were the two attempted assassins that were encountered on their way to the Land of Waves. After a bit of bantering they went at it. As last time, Kakashi and Zabuza went at it while Sasuke, who got some unasked help from Kiba took on the fake hunter, that was revealed to be someone named Haku.

At the same time, Kurenai went against the two previous counter assassins, who were identified as Gouzu and Meizu the Demon Brothers. But she wasn't doing on her own as surprising but by no means unwanted help from Shino. As was going on, Tazuna was being protected by Sakura and Hinata who were prepared to step in if need be.

"You two won't win." said Haku while being in one of the ice mirrors. It was impossible to tell where he would come from as there were multiple images of him in all of the other ice mirrors that he created. He followed that statement up by coming out from one of the mirrors and using unbelievable speed moved from one mirror to the next. As he did this he continually stabbed both Sasuke and Kiba with a barrage of senbon needles. When he stopped, both genins had tons of needles sticking within their bodies. "I won't allow you to escape."

**00000000**

"Don't think that history will repeat itself." exclaimed one of the Demon Brothers, Gouzu. "We're not going to be defeated by you again."

"That's correct." added Meizu. "Last time we took you too lightly but the same mistake won't happen here."

"Don't be so quick to judge." Kurenai was quick to argue. "Remember, you were beaten by some so called kids that you thought to be pushovers." Unable to stop themselves both brothers cringe at the recalling from that unpleasant memory. "Who's to say that the same won't happen again?"

Before any kind of comeback could be said the Demon Brothers suddenly leapt back. The reason for it was soon discovered as breaking through the ground like a small geyser was a swarm of bugs. When the 'eruption' ended the bugs reposition themselves the Konoha shinobi. Actually, they were moving themselves close to the person associated with, Shino Aburame.

"Some words of advice." spoke Shino. Though he tried to maintain his usual calm and collective manner, there was a touch of deadly seriousness within his voice. "Don't take this lightly. If you do then you'll pay for it with your life."

**00000000**

"It is done." What Haku was referring to was that both Sasuke and Kiba had finally fallen to the punishment that they had received from the young boy. The only one that got out of it was the dog, Akamaru who had been protected from damaged since Kiba shielded him from the oncoming needles. So far the dog had remained hidden from underneath his fallen master. "Now it is time to take care of Tazuna and put an end to it all."

Haku was about to step out from one of the mirrors and dissolve his bloodline limit but stopped when someone interceded themselves. Three kunais came flying from outside of the prism of ice mirrors and they hit their desired target. Regrettably it didn't do any damage what so ever. _"So the missing individual makes his finally appears."_ What Haku meant by that was that just outside of the mirrors was the blond genin, Naruto Uzumaki.

Standing where he was, Naruto wasn't even paying attention toward the phony hunter as his attention was focused on the fallen comrades. Without even thinking he rushed into the center of the mass ice mirrors and knelt beside both Sasuke and Kiba. Not wanting to believe what he was seeing, Naruto tried to revive them but there was no denying it. Both of them were dead.

"Sadly you arrived too late to save your comrades." Haku proclaimed with a voice that was detached of any kind of emotions. For his part, Naruto did nothing as he remained knelt beside the bodies of his teammates with his head tilt downward, concealing his face. "Does it pain you? Knowing that there lives have come to an end? Knowing that you weren't here to prevent it from happening?"

"Shut up." Naruto practically growled in a low tone. Still in the same position that he had been something could be felt coming off from him. It was small at first but was quickly growing into something strong. "You won't be forgiven." Not liking what he was sensing, Haku sent a barrage of needles which all hit their targets. Though that happen, the only sign of the blond haired demon vessel reacting to them was the slight movement when they pierced his body.

"You'll pay." The feeling that was felt earlier only continued to get stronger. It got to the point that Naruto's chakra actually became visible and it was in the color of red. "I'll kill you."

"_What is this?"_ thought Haku to himself. _"How can he have such a chakra increase? And the feeling that's coming from it is so vile."_ The red chakra was becoming so powerful that it actually encircled Naruto. As that went on all of the needles that were on his body began to come out and the wounds that came from them started to heal. _"His wounds have healed. What is he?"_

There wasn't any answers given but what Haku did get was Naruto looking over his shoulder but his face wasn't the same as it was before. His whisker markings on his cheek were thicker and instead of his usual blue eyes, Naruto's were now blood red with silted pupils. The sight alone sent more than a bit of fear in the boy.

**00000000**

Haku wouldn't the only that felt the vile chakra that was coming off from the blond as everything that was happening in the area stopped came to an immediate halt to the action that was happening. All of them were thinking pretty much the same thing. _"What in the world is that chakra? Is it even human?"_

Amongst them was Kakashi Hatake who was in his own predicament. Apparently Zabuza had prepared himself for their rematch as the mist that was created was even denser then it was last time and from the brief glance that he saw, Zabuza was fighting him with his eyes close. Those things basically rendered his Sharingan eye useless. But with the possibility of him being defeated and the uneasiness that he was getting from that unknown chakra, Kakashi decided to put an end to this struggle.

That led to using his version of a summoning and called forth his shinobi dogs, which varied in sizes, clamped themselves on various parts of Zabuza, making him immobile. "This is the end of your battle Zabuza. It's time for you to meet your maker."

"Enough of your words." spat Zabuza. Even in his current predicament he still maintained that same defiant demeanor. "You believed the same thing the last time that we fought and we know what happen there." Being defiant, Zabuza tried to lift his arms up but couldn't as the shinobi dogs that had their teeth clamped onto them. "I won't be dieing here. There's still too much I have to do."

"But how can you do that when you're dead?" spoke Kakashi as he prepared to deliver finishing blow. Once done he would go and find out what the source of that strong chakra had come from.

**00000000**

To say that the tide of the situation had completely change would be an understatement. Being consumed by anger, Naruto instantly focus on the masked boy. Wanting to take care of the enemy while still having opportunity to do so, Haku tried a diving attack from above. The maneuver appeared to be a success but for not as Naruto moved out of the way and grabbed him by the arm.

"_What is he?"_ Haku thought as he tried to free himself. Try as he might he couldn't get free from the blond's grip. It was as though he was trapped in a bear trap. "He's nothing like he was before." Haku wouldn't have much time to think about it any further as with his free hand, Naruto sent a powerful fist squarely at his mask.

There was enough force behind the punch that it sent Haku flying through one of his own ice mirrors. Remarkably, he managed to get back to his feet, even if he was close to falling back down at moment. No longer able to keep it up any longer all of the ice mirrors started to crumble away. All the while, an enraged Naruto maintained his sights on his battered adversary. On the inside though, he was having a struggle with himself.

"_Calm down. Calm down."_ the demon carrier repeated over and over. Slowly but surely Naruto was managing to regain his self-control. Unfortunately, his tenant thought differently.

"_**Don't back off now."**_ demanded Kyuubi. _**"Go over and rip him to shreds. At least allow me the satisfaction of spilling more of his blood."**_ If Naruto heard correctly it almost sounded like the nine-tailed fox was pleading for his host to do that for him. _**"It's the least you can do for what he did to your teammates."**_

"No, I won't. Now get out of my head." denied Naruto, not caring that he was speaking out loud. _"If you don't then I swear that I'll seal you so far in the seal that it'll take you forever to come out."_ That threat got its desire affect as Kyuubi started to retreat back but a growl of discontent could be heard before he returned to his subconscious.

"Why have you stopped?" wondered Haku. The blow that he recovered was obviously showing as he could hardly get a word out. Another thing that was showing signs of sustaining damage was the hunting mask that was being wore as bit by bit parts of the mask fell to the floor. When the mask finally fell it revealed that Haku was a boy no older than Naruto was and with brown eyes. The punch that he received earlier became more apparent as blood was flowing from his nose and the side of his mouth.

"I did kill two of your comrades." Being reminded of that unpleasant moment briefly cause Naruto to lose his composure and was about to respond with another punch but calmed back down before it came to that. "Where did it go? You're no longer like you were just moments ago."

"Because this is how I really am." Naruto replied in a soft voice. "Also, killing you wouldn't bring them back. All it'll do is lead to more killing and I for one don't have a taste for it. I don't know why you're willing someone like Zabuza and honestly, I don't care. Just get out of here while you can." As all of this was going on, the mist that had surrounded the area was starting to fade away.

Something else must've been going on as a worried expression came over Haku's battered face. In a move that was similar to what he did earlier he took off but still weaken from the blow that he was given it wasn't as fast as he was earlier which allowed Naruto to at least get a trace of where he was going. When he got a clear view of where he was going only one thing went through the blond's head. _"Damn it. I don't think that I'll be able to stop it in time."_

**00000000**

"But how can you do that when you're dead?" spoke Kakashi as he prepared to deliver finishing blow. Doing a quick succession of hand signs a form of what appeared to be lighting infused with his chakra developed in his right hand. It was so powerful that it was actually blowing away what remained of the mist that was close by. "Here's a move of my own creation, Chidori."

With jutsu in hand, Kakashi charged toward Zabuza who couldn't move as the dogs kept him from getting away. As headed towards him, the sound of what appeared to be birds chirping could be heard. It became clear that the sounds were coming from Chidori, which name meant 1,000 birds. Thrusting his hand forward he was about to pierce through shinobi criminal's heart. However, something intervened before the attack could connect. Actually, it was some_one_.

Before the Chidori hit, Haku suddenly placed himself in front of Zabuza. It became clear that the boy was prepared to take the fatal blow for him. Kakashi saw this but was moving to fast to stop himself in time and hoped that the unwanted obstacle would get out of the way at the last second. He would get his request in a way as Haku was pushed out of the way but now in his place was Naruto.

There wouldn't be anytime to set in as Kakashi's Chidori plunged into the blond's chest. Shock was evident as all those that witness what had just happen couldn't believe what the boy did. During the whole commotion the shinobi dogs puffed away in clouds of smoke, thus nothing was restraining Zabuza from moving. Zabuza would be the first one to recover from what happened before him as he saw it as an opportunity to attack Kakashi while he wasn't focusing on him.

Though his arm was injured from the dog attack he grabbed his zanbatō he was prepared to cut right through his unexpected savior to get at the masked shinobi. Zabuza wouldn't get the chance however because just before he could come down wit his weapon, Naruto exploded in a large cloud of smoke. That little interruption proved useful as it gave Kakashi to step out of harm's way before his enemy's attack could be completed.

"Thank goodness that I made it in time." shouted someone from the side. Turning to where the voice had came from and saw the actual Naruto. "For moment there I didn't think that my shadow clone would actually work there."

"_He used a shadow clone to step between me and Zabuza."_ realize Kakashi. _"Instead of using himself to get in my way, Naruto used a clone. Then when the smokescreen came from it being destroyed it became enough of a diversion for me to get to safety. A clever move but why would he do such a thing."_

As if knowing his confusion, Naruto explained what he just did. "I'm sorry Kakashi. I couldn't have you kill them. Even if they are our enemies."

**00000000**

When all of this was going on, both Sakura and Hinata maintained their position of guarding Tazuna. They couldn't see anything due to the heavy fog but still could hear all of the fighting that was taking place. When the fog started to go away both girls as well as the bridge builder thought that it would allow them to finally see what was going on.

What they saw was Kakashi's lighting maneuver piercing the chest of Naruto. The sight nearly caused Hinata to faint right there. But to their relief it was revealed that it was actually a shadow clone that took the hit. With the status of one of her teammates being confirmed, Sakura wondered about the other members of their team.

"Hey there, Naruto. Where's Sasuke? Is he still with Kiba?" Instead of getting an immediate answer, Naruto lowered his head and a dejected look came over his head. That alone made Sakura more concern then perhaps anything that could've been said. Having na idea what the girl wanted to due, Tazuna told her that he'd go with her. Giving silent thanks they ran toward where they had seen Sasuke and Kiba fighting.

Following not that far behind was Hinata but as they ran pass Naruto she momentarily slowed down and thought about staying beside the blond. However, thought twice about it and follow the other two. She arrived a few moments later and what she saw instantly put all thoughts about Naruto's wellbeing away as she soon joined an already grieving Sakura as they saw the lifeless bodies of their friends.

**00000000**

"Well, isn't this a sight." exclaimed Gatô. You could practically hear delight in the little man and maybe he had a good reason to be. All about him were many hired fighters that he got for such a situation. "I think that it's time that we put an end to our little business arrangement, Zabuza." Essentially all of the fighting came to a halt. Even the two on two of Kurenai and Shino versus the Demon Brothers stopped though the brothers were serious weaken from the insects of Shino's sucking up most of their chakra.

"Gatô, you damn conniving bastard." growled Zabuza. "You had no attention in paying us, were you?" He got his answer when the business man's smile grew even bigger. "Apparently are issues are over, Kakashi. Tazuna's life is spared from me since I'm no longer getting paid for it."

Surveying the scene, Gato saw that most of the opposition was either already taken cared of or was close to being so. It was around that time that he noticed Haku who was too beaten to even get back to his feet. Seeing it as an opportunity to further degradation he kicked the fallen boy in the ribs. "Take that, you snot nose punk."

"Get away from him you son of a bitch!" yelled Naruto. Once again his anger was getting the better of him and some of the demon chakra was beginning to bleed out. Rushing forward he was fully prepared to go there and rip the tiny man to pieces but was stopped when Kakashi grabbed the back of his shirt though the jonin was pulled a bit before coming to a stop. "Let me go. That bastard deserves to pay."

"That's enough, Naruto." instructed Kakashi. "It wouldn't do any good to go at this with our emotions to control us."

"Screw calming down!" the blond quickly shot back in complete anger. "I'm not going to stand back and allow that little shit to get away with that." Turning his attention, Naruto set his sights on the battered Zabuza who was showing no reaction from what just happen to Haku. "Aren't you going to do something? Isn't he your friend?"

"Shut up kid. Hakku wasn't nothing more than a tool of mine. For me to use as I saw fit and discard when no longer of use." conveyed Zabuza. He even retained that same unemotional voice from before which only intensified the anger that the blond had been feeling.

"So you don't care? He was willing to die to protect you and yet you feel nothing?" Unknown at that time for Naruto was that everyone was listening to his outburst. "If you're the example of how someone becomes strong, than I rather be a weakling."

"Be quite, boy." demanded Zabuza. "Don't say another word." Unlike last time though, he was using a more compose voice. On closer examination it was revealed that the serious and deadly expression on the man known as the Demon of the Mist actually breaking down and replaced by a seldom look. "You're just like Haku. Both of you are too innocent to be a shinobi." No longer able to even hold onto his zanbatō anymore he allowed it to fall to the ground. "Boy, lend me a kunai."

Not making any disagreement, Naruto tossed him one of his kunais. Gripping it tightly in his only useable hand the deadly expression resurfaced on Zabuza's face. Going as fast as his weaken legs would allow him he charged straight for Gatô who was frantically running to back of the mass group of hired guns. Not slowing down a bit Zabuza continued onward, weaving in-between those who were in front of him or killing them if necessary.

That did not mean that he didn't get any injuries himself as a few of the hired men managed to stab him with several weapons and some of them still stuck to his back. Along with the injuries that he already had, Zabuza was gradually being stopped. He would get some help however as the two Demon Brothers, despite still feeling the affects from their earlier fight, got themselves involved. But their participation would be short as due to their weaken condition were quickly taken cared of as both of them were killed.

Their deaths wouldn't be in vain however as it gave Zabuza the opportunity to reach his desired location and that was in front of the deathly frighten Gatô. Without the slightest bit of remorse the former shinobi from Kiri severed the head of Gatô from his body and it was no doubt that the detestable businessman was dead. There was so much force behind the attack that the head went flying over the side of the bridge and into the water below.

Throughout all of that, the Konoha shinobi couldn't help but be startled by what they had witness. Even the usual stoic Shino was showing signs of be amazed at what had been seen. On the bridge the only sounds that could be heard was the haggard breathing from Zabuza and the faint sobbing that were from Sakura and Hinata as they were still distraught at the death of Sasuke and Kiba. Hearing those cries only helped to drive the fact home that there were casualties on both ends.

Seemingly once he accomplish what he wanted, what strength that Zabuza had left him as he finally started to collapse to the ground. That didn't happen though; as he was falling someone managed to keep him somewhat up. That person was none other than Haku, who managed to create a ice mirror and use it to get over to his thrashed comrade. As gentle as he could, Haku removed the weapons that were stuck in Zabuza's back before laying him down on the ground. Smartly, none of the hired men tried to use what was going on as an opportunity to do a sneak attack.

"How are you feeling, Zabuza?" asked Haku. Though he was severely in his own right all that mattered to him was the condition of the older man.

"Not so bad with all considering. Especially, since I'm dieing." Haku wanted to deny such a thing but knew that it would be futile. "Thank you, Haku." Zabuza managed to say though some blood was starting to escape from the corner of his mouth. "Despite how I treated you never once did you complain and did it without hesitation. But now it's time for you to do what _you_ want to do. Live your own life and achieve your own dream. Maybe one day we'll see each other again." With nothing left in his, Zabuza Momochi, the Demon of the Mist and former Kiri shinobi finally succumb to death.

**00000000**

"_What's that sound? It sounds like crying."_ Slowly emerging from the darkness, the thought to be dead Sasuke Uchiha started to regain consciousness. Opening his eyes a bit he saw that he was still on the bridge but it was the sound that he heard earlier. The source would be Sakura who was kneeling at his side and weeping heavily. Not that far from them was Hinata who was beside the fallen body of Kiba while holding a sadden Akamaru.

"Do you mind stopping that?" mumbled Sasuke that was just could be heard clearly. "It's starting to hurt my ears."

Hearing that instantly cause Sakura to stop crying and stare shockingly at what she thought to be her dead teammate and not so secret love interest. "S-S-Sasuke?" When it was clear that the black haired boy was indeed alive she did the first thing that came across her mind.

Leaning forward she wrapped her arms around him and started to cry again but this time they were tears of joy. "You don't know how glad I am that you're alive." Sasuke wanted to tell the girl to let him go but was unable to do so due to the grip that Sakura had on him. From where she was, Hinata was happy to see that Sasuke was alive but at the same time was still sad that the same couldn't be said for Kiba.

"Can you keep it down over there?" complained someone. "That nonstop sopping is almost worse than the sound of fingernails scratching against a chalkboard." It took only a matter of seconds to recognize where that voice belonged to. They would be proven correct as slowly the likewise thought to be dead Kiba Inuzuka push himself to a sitting position. Soon after he did so he was tackled by a happy Akamaru. "Hey, take it easy, Akamaru. You're smothering me."

Almost similar to what Sakura had done earlier, Hinata started to shed tears of happiness that her teammate was still alive but stayed where she was as she didn't feel that it was appropriate to give him an embrace. "Where's that masked kid?" asked Kiba after remembering what happen before losing consciousness. "Did Sasuke beat him before passing out?"

"It wasn't me." Sasuke replied. He was now freed of Sakura hold but had his head tilted downward. Divulging that brought a bad taste in the Uchiha's mouth as to him it was as though he announced his defeat.

"It may have been Naruto." declared Hinata. "He could've shown up in time and defeated Haku before anything fatal could happen."

"Naruto's here?" Lifting his head up, Sasuke saw that in the distance was Naruto as he was not from the crowd of unknown people. The mere thought that the blond actually defeated the masked boy raised the anger that he already had bottled up inside of him. _"There's no way that's possible."_

"We don't know that for sure." Sakura disputed. "Nothing could've been seen due to the fog. Anything could've happen while it was up." There wasn't any disagreement to that because it was a chance that was what had happen. "Hey, Naruto. Sasuke and Kiba are all right."

Hearing that, Naruto turned around and saw that what he heard was the truth. The sight of both Uchiha and Inuzuka boys battered but alive relieved him deeply. _"They're alive? That means that he never-thank goodness. Everyone made it."_

**00000000**

Tears escaped the eyes of Haku as he mourned the death of elder and teammate. Wiping them away he tried to lift Zabuza's body but found it difficult to do so. "Mind if I help?" Standing close by the scene was Kakashi. Understanding what he was talking about, Haku merely nodded his head. Together the two of them lifted the lifeless body of Zabuza and were prepared to take it over to the others. Of course, wanting to do and actually doing were two different things.

"Now hold it right there." notified one of the hired men. He was one of the few who managed to stay away from the carnage that Zabuza did when he went through the group of men. "We just lost our meal ticket. In response I think that all of you should all die." Throughout all those who remained all shouted their approval of that suggestion. "Afterward we'll pillage the village for everything that they have of worth."

For them the shinobi could only curse to themselves, as they all knew that there was nothing that they could do to stop them. Even the optimistic Naruto was unable to think of anything positive. _"Damn it. There's no way to stop them. If I was able to become Fox then I'd be able to the majority of them. But I can't do it here without revealing my secret."_ Not being able to come up with any kind of workable plan he went with the next best thing.

"_This won't stop them but it'll at least help to hold them back for a while."_ "Shadow Clone Jutsu." On either side of Naruto was two shadow clones. This new twist stopped the greedy men from going any further. However, it only worked for a few moments as they resumed their rush for the village.

As they hurried for the opportunity of gaining as much plunder as possible there seemed to be nothing that would stand in their way in doing so. That would all change when at the end of the bridge that led to the village was being blocked by someone. To be more specific, it was the entire citizens of the village forming a large human barricade and all of them were armed with anything that they could use as a weapon. "If you want to enter our village you have to go through all of us to do so." Yells could be heard by the other villagers who were in full support of that statement.

To add with the growing defiance that was being showed to the hired fighters, Kakashi used what chakra he had left to create a mass of clones but unlike shadow clones they weren't solid but what wasn't known by anyone else. With the situation no longer to their liking, the hired fighters did the first thing that came to them and that was to make an escape. When all of them were gone it unintentionally started up the celebration as the people had gotten back their village and their freedom.

**00000000**

"So, what's your diagnose?" questioned Kakashi to his fellow jonin, Kurenai Yuhi.

"Well, I'm no medical specialist but overall everything's okay in a matter of speaking. Both Kiba and Sasuke received several puncture wounds but essentially they'll be completely healed in a few days. Shino also sustained a few bruise ribs but they won't hinder him if he takes it easy for a while. Everyone else is pretty much fine."

"What of our guest?" Kakashi didn't need to elaborate to who he was referring to.

"Ah yes, him. By far he's the one that was the most injured." Kurenai stated before she went ahead and started listing her analyzes. "He has a fractured jaw, a sprain to the left wrist and a partial dislocated left shoulder. But that's just the physical damage. The emotional suffering is another story." There was no need for Kurenai to explain as Kakashi knew what she was talking about.

"Indeed. Sometimes the emotional wounds are the hardest to recover from and even then you don't always comeback from." On the other side of the door that the two of them were talking in front of it was the person that the conversation was about. Sitting in a futon was battered and injured Haku who was simply staring down at his lap with saddened eyes.

**00000000**

Days Later...

"You should all know that we'll be leaving for Konoha tomorrow." That announcement got a variety of reactions from those in the room. Some of them had apparently started to become homesick and were glad to be heading home while there were others who were somewhat sad to leave the connections that they made at the Land of Waves. "Are mission is done since the bridge has been completed and there's nothing left for us to be here for."

"What about the boy, Haku?" wondered Shino. "Is he going to come with us?"

There was a brief eye contact between Kakashi and Kurenai as if they were having a silent conversation with each other before the red eyed jonin woman gave an answer. "Most likely, yes. He'll come back with us to Konoha and be confined until the real hunters of Kiri are notified about it."

"Then what'll happen?" asked Naruto. "So they can take him back and kill him? Sorry but I don't agree with that?"

"So what do you want to do? Let him go?" questioned Kiba. He like Sasuke had mostly recovered from their injuries but was still not completely healed. "Have you forgotten that he could've killed two of your teammates?"

"But he didn't." Naruto quickly retorted. "Haku had plenty of time to get of you and Sasuke before I got there. He was even willing to be killed if it meant to protect Zabuza. He's just like us, a person willing to die to protect someone or something that they care deeply for." Nothing was said by anyone as what Naruto said to sink in.

"Now that is something. Its snowing." spoke Tsunami who was looking out of the kitchen window. Becoming curious they looked out of the other windows and saw that the older woman was telling the truth as snow was falling to the ground. "It's weird. Usually snow doesn't fall during this time of the year."

For a brief moment, Naruto thought that seeing this may help cheer up Haku. While everyone was watching the scene outside, he went to the room that the recovering boy was in. "Hey, are you seeing what's happening outside, Haku?" When there wasn't any kind of response, Naruto slowly opened the door, expecting to see the boy sitting there being all depress. He wouldn't get that though as there was nothing n the room expect for an empty futon.

**00000000**

As the snow was falling there was a teenage boy standing near a cliff edge. Not to be mistaken, the boy was at there to jump off. He was there because by the edge was three newly created graves with one in front of the other two. There wasn't anything there to identify the people that were in the graves. Nothing that is except that embedded in between the graves was a large zanbatō.

"Hello, Zabuza, Gouzu and Meizu." spoke Haku in a slightly depress tone. He didn't say anything for a while as he seemingly didn't know what to do next. When Haku finally figured out what to do he reached into his pocket and pulled out something. Kneeling down he placed the item on the ground in front of the zanbatō. Getting back up the item was revealed to be the broken pieces of his fake hunter's mask.

"This is where we say goodbye. I'm going to do what you say Zabuza and find my place in the world." Turning around he started to take his leave but stopped to say something else. "Though I leave you it does not mean that I won't forget about any of you and what you have done for me. Farewell." Having said his peace, Haku headed off into the shadows, towards his undetermined future.

**00000000**

"I think that I speak for everyone when I say 'It's good to be heading home'." Kiba's statement was fully agreed by everyone. After saying their goodbyes to the thankfully people of the Land of Waves both Kakashi and Kurenai's team were walking down the newly completed bridge back to Konoha. "I can't tell you guys how glad I am to be heading back. That mission was so demanding."

"I can't agree anymore." added Naruto. "I don't know about you guys but one of the first things that I'm going to do when we get back is have a big helping of Ickiraku Ramen." Everyone else couldn't help but groan as the stories of Naruto's consumption of that particular food was widely known. "It's too bad that we weren't able to find Haku before we left."

"It couldn't be helped." stated Kakashi. "The snow covered his trail to the point that there's no for us to find him. We shouldn't need to worry though. The chances of him showing up again are very unlikely. But you six need to worry about other things. The Chunin Exams that's within in a month is one." The mentioning of the upcoming exams immediately got everybody to think of what they had been preparing themselves for quite sometime.

"But that's for another time. For now though, take the time to relax and ready yourself for what's to come." There was no argument from any of those there as whether they knew it or not, that whatever was to come was going to be a difficult experience.

* * *

Well, hopefully that was a ending that you readers are okay with. You might be wondering what'll happen with Haku. Let's just say that you might see him in this story again. Whether that happens or not it won't be happening anytime soon.

Before you go please be kind and leave a review. Remember, it's the reviews of the readers that helps motivate the writers and makes us want to continue to work on our stories.


	19. Assemble

Well, here is the next chapter to my story. With the end of the whole Wave Country Arc done the story is moving onto the Chunin Exam. Most of the big parts from that part will be somewhat the same but I'll of course have my own twist to how some of the things happen. To know what I mean you'll have to read and find out.

Anyway, for the disclaimer, I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Chapter 19:  
Assemble

"Ah, it's so good to be back." In his room, looking through his window was a happy Naruto. It had been a couple hours since he and his partners had returned from their mission at the Land of Waves and a lot happened already.

Soon as they arrived back in Konoha all of them went to the Hokage to report what occurred. There were questions that were asked, such as what had happen to Haku and the mysterious chakra that reportedly had been felt in the area. Those and many others were answered as best as possible since there were some that were a complete mystery and none of them seemingly knew the answer.

Once the report was given they were dismiss and all went to do their own thing. Some of them went to get whatever injuries they may have had checked out. For most, they simply went home to rest up and that included Naruto. When he got home there wasn't any sign of Jiraiya anywhere.

"_He's probably out doing more of his 'research'."_ Putting his bag down, he let out an exhausting breath. _"Oh well, that's his business. As for me, I think I'll go out and get some air."_ With that thought Naruto headed out of the apartment, not expecting anything of interest happening. That did not mean that there wouldn't be any.

**00000000**

"Welcome home, lady Hinata." greeted one of the branch members. Returning the greeting with one of her own, Hinata headed for her room. Coming home was somewhat of a mix bag for the Hyuga girl. She was of course glad to be from that difficult mission but now having to return to the issues that were at home. Knowing what was probably going to happen she quietly tried to make her way to her room.

"Hinata, will you come here?" spoke the leader of the Hyuga family, her father, Hiashi Hyuga. For a brief moment Hinata thought about pretending as though she didn't hear him but knew that it wouldn't work. So slowly she entered and saw sitting alone in the room was her father who had the same stern look on his face that he usually had. Not being needed to be told, she sat across from him. "How did your mission go?"

"It went well." Hinata answered in the most confident voice that she could muster. "We protected the client and were successful in completing the bridge."

"But there's more to it, isn't there." By how Hiashi said that, Hinata knew that her father wasn't asking a question. "I was informed that your group went up against a dangerous criminal and his men. It was also said that your group were responsible in stopping him."

"That is correct. But I really didn't do anything. I merely help protect Tazuna while the others fought. Anyway, it was Kakashi Hatake that fought against Zabuza Momachi while the others went against his group."

"Was one of them Naruto Uzumaki?" Again her father's words surprised Hinata as she didn't expect him to ask such a question.

"Yes he was. He assisted in defeating one of the men." What Hinata said was basically the truth as that what happened but not everything since there was that strange chakra that was felt during the fight against Haku. She had wanted to asked her friend what happened but didn't when she saw the look on Naruto's face.

"Is that so? You may leave and get clean up." Not arguing at all the young Hyuga girl left the room. As Hinata went to her room she couldn't help but wonder what her father's deal was. It was no secret that her family had something against Naruto. She had no idea what the reason was and everything she asked all she got was that it was too complicated for her to understand. But strangely Hiashi, although did have issues with her friend, it was at a lesser extent.

Knowing that she wouldn't get anywhere by thinking about such a thing, Hinata put it away and went into her room. Once putting all of her things away she allowed herself to collapse on her bed. Soon sleep started to overcome Hinata and just as she was going to surrender to it, she couldn't help but wonder what truly happened during the fight on the bridge and wondered what connection that Naruto had with it.

**00000000**

"Are you sure that you're okay?

"Yes, I'm fine." repeated a slightly irritated Naruto. "There's no need to worry. Besides, doesn't worry result in early wrinkles?" You wouldn't wan that, would you Ino?" Luckily Naruto managed to avoid the on coming swing that was aimed for his head. "Hey now, I was only joking."

"I wouldn't joke about such a thing Naruto." voiced a third member of the group. "Joking about a girl's looks isn't a funny mater. Also, this is Ino and she couldn't afford to have her looks dwindle even more than they already are."

As expected, the girl was quick to respond to that verbal jab. "What did you say? You're in no position to talk about looks. I mean, you have that giant size forehead. You could use it as a billboard if you wanted to."

Naruto had a feeling what was going to happen next and he would be correct as both Ino and Sakura were sending heated glares at one another. "Come on you two. Don't start." His words went on death ears as the two girls continued with their silent duel with each other.

Sighing, Naruto gave up and let them do what they wanted. All he wanted to do was take a walk only for things to change when he bumped into Sakura and Ino. Now he was walking around Konoha while telling the bleach blonde what happen during the mission. Of course, there were some parts that was left out due to privacy reasons.

"Fine then. We'll have Naruto decide." The mentioning of his name brought the spiky haired boy back to attention of what was going on. "He'll decide which one of us looks better." Agreeing with the suggestion both girls turn their sights on him. "Well, which one of us looks prettier Naruto?"

Wisely knowing the problems that would happen because of it, Naruto tried to get around from answering. "Oh, come on you two. Is this really necessary?" Realizing that both of them were not going to let the subject drop he let out a weak chuckle before coming to a decision.

"Hey, isn't that Sasuke?" The reaction was instant as Sakura and Ino turned around where the Uchiha should've been but saw no one. Not taking kindly to being tricked both girls turned around to give the Naruto a serious beating but saw that the boy in question was nowhere to be found.

**00000000**

"Oh man, that was a close one." Soon as he had the opening, Naruto took it and was now good distance away from Sakura and Ino. When the both of them were looking away he used a transformation jutsu to become a slightly older and attractive woman with long blond hair that was in two pigtails and wearing a pale orange kimono. Only after he was a safe distance way did he allowed the transformation to drop. "I don't even want to know what would happen if I actually gave an answer."

"_**Worried that you may lose a chance in being with either one?"**_ wondered Kyuubi in a teasing manner. _**"Why not go ahead and have both of them? Surely both of them are wild in bed."**_ When he heard that it caused an immediate blush to come over Naruto's face. _**"Don't tell me that such thoughts never cross your mind."**_

"_Th-That's none of your business."_ Naruto retorted after regaining some of his composure. _"Whatever my love life may be it's none of your concern, so stay out of it. Is that understood?"_ All he got was the nine-tailed fox's mocked laughter. The whole 'conversation' really made Naruto unease so he decided to do something that he hadn't been able to do for quite some time. "Well why not? I had planned to do it sooner of later."

**00000000**

"Ah, this really did the trick." Moving from on top the rooftops was Naruto, now in his other form, Fox. He hadn't notice it but Naruto had miss being able to become his other self. That being of course it would be a bit of a risk transforming and someone from his team possible figuring it out. After all, Shikamaru was able to find out the truth easily.

"Speaking of Shikamaru, I should probably go find him. See if anything strange happen while I was gone." Fox was about to look for his friend at his usual hangouts when he suddenly stopped in his track. _"What is this I'm feeling?"_ Looking all about he tried to find the source of that peculiar feeling.

Unexplainably, Fox headed in the direction that he thought that the weird feeling was coming from. Whatever the reason the long haired demon host had to find out what it was. When he thought that he was close to the source of the feeling, Fox hid himself in a tree. Checking his surroundings he finally got an idea what that strange sensation was coming from. _"You got to be kidding me."_

Walking down the path were three people who were somewhere around his age. One was a boy, perhaps a few years older was the tallest of the three and had an interesting appearance to him. He was wearing a black jumpsuit that covered most of his body and some kind of hood that left only his face exposed. To add to the strange look he had purple markings, obviously from makeup, on various parts of his face. Also there was something strapped over one of his shoulders but couldn't be identified since it was completely covered in bandages.

The second one was the only female of the group and like with the other one, she apparently was older than Fox. She was wearing what appeared to be light black outfit, similar to a kimono, that reached pass her knees. It was somewhat loose fitting but didn't really hide the figure that she had grown into. Along with the outfit there was a red sash tied around her waist and two smaller ones on her shoulders that helped to hold the large object that was on her back. Lastly, her dirty blond hair was tied in four bushy ponytails with two of them on top of the other two.

The third and final member of the group, though he was the shortest and seemingly youngest of the three, there was something about him. He was wearing an entire brown outfit with a button up jack that reached pass his knees with the bottom of it flowing freely. On his back was a large tan colored gourd. If there was something inside it there was no way to tell. Something else that caught Fox's attention was that on the boy's forehead, just below his short red hair was a red tattoo of the kanji word for 'love'.

All three of them looked pretty intense looking but the feeling that Fox was getting from the redhead was different. For some reason it was putting him on edge. _"I don't know what it is but I don't like what I'm feeling."_

The fox boy wouldn't be able to think about it any further as he felt something unusual on his leg. Looking down he saw that wrapped around his left ankle was what appeared to be a vine like thing made up of sand. "What the f-" Fox didn't get to finish what he was going to say as the sand yanked him out of the tree and dropping him to the ground. "That went smoothly." Following the sand it led to the boy that he'd been watching closely. "Hello there. How's it going?"

"Why or what are you?" asked the boy dressed in black. He wasn't the only one that was surprise by what he was seeing as the girl had the same confused look on her face. As for the third member of their group, he remained as stoic as before. In fact, he hadn't move an inch since he caught Fox. "I've heard that Konoha had some strange people but I didn't think that they would be this strange."

"Look who's talking." countered Fox. "Just wondering, what's the deal with the makeup? Trying to make you feel pretty?" His taunts did its job as the boy became extremely annoyed and was close to attack him. "Hey calm down. The red in your face is really clashing with your makeup." That just infuriated the boy even more.

"He's got a point Kankuro." said the girl with a slight smile on her face. "That red isn't doing you any favors."

"Don't start Temari." retorted the now identified Kankuro. "This is war paint, not makeup."

"If that's what you say to yourself then go ahead." Fox furthered taunted. "But we know the truth." Finally getting up to his feet he examined the three people in front of him. Peering down he remembered the sand that was still wrapped around his ankle. "Uh, do you mind?" The question was directed to the one person who hadn't said a single word the entire time.

For a moment there wasn't any kind of response and for a while, Fox wondered if the guy even heard him. Finally the sand let go of him and started to go into the large gourd. When it was all inside a cork was put to close the opening.

"Ah, s you're able to control sand with chakra. That's a nifty trick you have there." No reaction came from the red haired boy. "Maybe you should use some of that sand on yourself." Fox was of course referring to the dark rings around his eyes. Again there wasn't any reaction. "You know sand…sleep. Forget it. You guys aren't from around here I take it."

"That's right." confirmed the girl whose name was Temari. "Where from Suna and we're here for the upcoming exam."

"So you're here for the Chunin Exam. It should be interesting how it all turns out. Well, I'll be going now." Fox was about to leave but stopped when someone called out.

"Wait." The person who spoke out was the redhead. "The name's Gaara. What's yours?"

"My name's Fox. Ask around if you want to know more." Strangely, that weird sensation that he had been getting from Gaara became stronger when he revealed his name. Not wasting anymore time, Fox took off and soon was out of sight.

"Good riddance." commented Kankuro once the fiery-orange haired person was gone. "That guy was a complete pain in the ass."

"I don't know." Temari added her two cents into the discussion. "I found him to be very interesting."

"You would." Seeing that enough tie had been wasted they decided to head for where they were going to be staying when they realized that the third member of their group hadn't move." Hey Gaara, what's the matter?"

Gaara didn't say anything but what the two of them notice was that a sadistic type of smile had come across his face. Noticing this, Temari and Kankuro couldn't help but be put a little at unease. Both of them knew that whenever a smile like that was seen on Gaara it usually meant that something bad usually was going to happen. They only hoped that whenever that happened they were nowhere around.

**00000000**

After leaving the Suna team, Fox didn't stop moving until he was a couple miles away. _"Well, that was an interesting group. But I'm kind of glad that I'm far away from them. That Gaara guy especially."_ The mere recalling of that guy caused Fox to shiver slightly. _"I don't know what it was but he gave me the creeps. For some reason, what I was getting from him felt somewhat familiar."_

"_**You still haven't figured it out yet?"**_ questioned Kyuubi. He actually sounded like he was surprise that his host hadn't figured whatever it was out yet. _**"Ask yourself this question. Why was that chakra felt so familiar to you?"**_

"_Because it was somewhat similar to…"_ Suddenly it came to Fox to why Gaara's was so familiar. _"It can't be. There's just no way that it's possible. Or could it?"_

**00000000**

"Are you sure about this?"

"Afraid so." confirmed Naruto. Doing as he planned earlier, the blond met up with Shikamaru so they could discuss things. Wanting to talk somewhere that didn't draw any attention to them they choose a simple café. While there wasn't anything from Shikamaru's end the same couldn't be said for Naruto as he told his friend about the encounter that he had earlier. "I was doubtful at first but I'm certain now."

"How is that possible?" Shikamaru questioned who was troubled about the whole thing. "I mean, how can you be sure?"

"Because his chakra felt similar to mine while I'm Fox." Naruto clarified. "Only his was more intense than mine." Letting out a deep breath in the hopes of releasing the built up tension before, he went ahead and laid it all out. "There's no denying it. Gaara from Suna is also a demon host."

"One that's going to be in the Chunin Exam." reestablished Shikamaru. "The same exact exam that we could be in. This whole thing is really a drag." Though the discussion was a serious one, Naruto couldn't help but smirk from hearing one of his friend's trademark phrases. "What do we do about this?"

"Honestly, I don't know. I'm kind of hoping to have the old man use his resources to find out about Gaara. But I haven't seen him since I've returned. There's no telling where he is."

Understanding who his friend was referring to as 'old man'; Shikamaru figured that perhaps it was time to wrap their discussion up. That was until he noticed something from the corner of his eye. "Isn't that him over there?"

Looking over to where the shadow user was pointing to, Naruto saw that he was right. Across the street was a bar but it was what could be seen inside that caught the two boys' attention. Sitting at one of the windows was Jiraiya, only he was sitting across from a young woman who seemed to be in her mid twenties.

From their position they could see that the woman had black hair that reached half way down her neck and wearing a simple black kimono with light brown trim. The two of them were involved in some kind of conversation but it was impossible to know what it was about as they were too far to hear and neither of them could read lips.

"Why am I not surprise?" muttered Naruto quietly. "The moment that he has the chance he goes and finds himself some woman to be with." Digging into his pocket, Naruto pulled out a small sum of money and placed it on the table. "This is on me Shikamaru. I'm heading home and of course keep quiet about what we talked about." Taking his leave the boy didn't look back as he knew that his friend wouldn't do anything to betray him.

**00000000**

Right after returning home Naruto went ahead and unpacked his stuff. Once done he thought about perhaps doing a bit of training, both his usual and some in his demon form. _"The Chunin Exam is only a few weeks away and it's very likely that my team will be in it. If so then the chances of going against Gaara are high. I better get ready for whatever is to come."_

"Hey runt, are you here?" Jiraiya called out. He apparently returned somewhat earlier than originally expected.

"_Most likely he got shot down…again."_ Chuckling for a moment Naruto calmed himself down. "Yeah, I'm here. What do you want?"

"Just come to the living room. There's something that you have to see."

Unable to help it his curiosity got the better of him. Going ahead he left his room and went to the living room. "All right old man, I'm here. What is it that you wanted to show me?" Though he was curious, Naruto didn't like it when he saw the large goofy grin on Jiraiya's face.

"Well, it's not some_thing_. Actually it's some_one_." The cryptic explaining only confused the boy even more. "Okay. You can show yourself." It was the sound of footsteps that shifted the attention toward the apparent revealing of someone.

Emerging from the kitchen was two women. Naruto immediately recognize that one of them was the person that he saw Jiraiya talking with in the bar. The other woman had light blond hair that was in two simple ponytails that went past her shoulders and brownish-gold eyes which was set squarely on Naruto.

What the woman was wearing was a gray shirt with green over shirt and blue pants. Despite what she was wearing it didn't hide that she was well-endowed that he managed to not stare at. Another ting that Naruto notice was that there was something about the lady. He didn't know what it was but he had a feeling about it.

Turning his sights away from the women he looked over to the still grinning Jiraiya. He suddenly realized what was going on. "You really are a big pervert, old man. Apparently you weren't satisfied with only one so you decided to have two women at the same time."

Hearing that cause a mixture of reactions from all those there. Namely the black haired lady started to blush and the blond becoming angry. Before anything could happen, a small pig with a red vest walked into the room. "Oh, now that's just sick."

Composing himself from the shocking statement, Jiraiya went ahead and clear things up before it was too late. "You got it wrong Naruto. Let me introduce you to an old friend of mine, Tsunade and her apprentice and companion, Shizune." He would go ahead and point the woman while saying the name to help with the introduction.

"Oh. Sorry about that." Naruto quickly apologize. "Knowing this perverted old man I couldn't help but jump to conclusions." Suddenly recalling what he needed to ask Jiraiya, the boy thought that there was no better time to ask then the present. "Hey, old man, I was wondering if you could get information about someone for me. His name is Gaara and he's from Suna."

"You mean the youngest son of the Kazekage?" asked Shizune. Her sudden speaking up caught the boy off guard. He didn't expect that He didn't expect that either of them would enter into the conversation.

"Uh, yeah, probably that's him. I didn't really ask for his family's history." Shifting his attention back to Jiraiya, Naruto continued with his request. "He and his team are here to participate in the upcoming Chunin Exam and I would like to know what I might be up against if I come across him. In case that happens I'd like to know what he's capable of."

"Would it be because he's a demon host?" questioned Tsunade in a calm voice. "Like you are?"

That greatly surprise Naruto as he never expected to hear that from someone that he just introduce to. "Don't worry kid. They both knew your secret for some time." Jiraiya tried to reassure the boy. It of course didn't really work as Naruto continued to be confuse and at the same time angry about the whole situation. "I've known Tsunade since we were your age and Shizune is trustworthy so you can trust them to keep your secret."

Fortunately that got through to Naruto as it calmed him down enough to think clearly. "Since you were children, huh? Then that at least helps to explain what I'm getting from her." He tapped his nose to clarify what he meant. "Though you look young, I'm getting the scent of someone older. Using a genjutsu to make you look younger? If so then it's an impressive one."

"Close but no." corrected Tsuande. She didn't seem surprise that Naruto discovered her façade. Actually, she appeared to be slightly impressed. "I'm a medical specialist and I was able to create a medical jutsu to alter my appearance." Not it was Naruto's to be impress. Even though his knowledge of medical jutsu was near to nonexistent he knew that such a thing couldn't be easy to do.

"You have to realize Naruto that Tsunade is really amazing." stated Shizune. The boy in question surprisingly couldn't help but like the lady. Maybe it had something to do with her being the closest to his age. "She isn't known as one of the best medical specialist in not only Konoha but in the world. After all, she was able to help the girl that you saved from that Amachi person."

"Isaribi?" Naruto remembered that she had been used as a test subject by that twisted doctor and was hunted down when she managed to escape before Fox was able to help her. "You guys were the ones that Jiraiya took Isaribi to get help? How is she? Is she here as well?"

"No she's not." informed Tsunade. "Though we weren't able to get rid of what had been done to her we were able to make it so that she could live a somewhat normal life. She's basically like you now. Appear to be human while being able to transform willingly." Unknowingly what was said had cause Naruto to become annoyed. "Currently she's living with some family members that she had in some village and doing quite well."

"That's good to hear. Isaribi deserves to live happily after what she had to go through." stated Naruto who was truly happy for the girl. "But let's make something clear. I don't _appear_ to be human. I _am_ human. I just have something that's sealed within me. So, thanks for helping my friend but unless you have anything else to say then goodbye."

"That may be hard to do Naruto." informed Jiraiya. "The two of them are going to be staying in Konoha for a while. So we'll going to be seeing each other quite a bit."

"If that's the case then so be it." Naruto conceded. "Just make sure that grandma here doesn't do anything to get on my bad side."

Jiraiya tried to warn the boy but was too late as Tsunade punched him in the back of the head. There was enough force behind it that Naruto hit the ground. Being concern about his well being, Shizune went over to check his condition.

To his credit, Naruto seemingly only sustained a large bump to his head which he was carefully rubbing while glaring at Tsunade. She appeared to be not at all that affected by the boy's glare but showed signs of being extremely irritated. "What a way to make a first impression." muttered Jiraiya with his hand against his forehead.

* * *

Didn't I tell you that I would change some stuff around? Having Naruto and the Suna siblings for the first time and discoving about Gaara being a demon host was something I wanted to do that wasn't similar to how it went in the actual series. Another thing that I wanted to do to change things is have Tsunade and Shizune appear sooner than in the series. I figured that it would help mix things around.

For the whole Kakashi becoming curious about Naruto, that's an idea I came up with that would make the story a bit more interested. Remember, the whole thing about Naruto having the nine-tailed fox inside of him is hardly known by anyone and his father kept it to himself as well. I promise that they'll be more to that particular plot point as the story progresses.

A little head's up, I won't go immediately go into the Chunin Exam. There's going to be a couple of original chapters that's going to take place before I even start with the first phase of the exam. So just bare with me and I hope that you enjoy reading those chapters.


	20. Liberated

Here's another chapter to my story. Like I mentioned in the previous chapter, the next few are going to be original before I focus on the Chunin Exam arc. I hope that what I do with them are not going to be a bother for you readers. For the disclaimer, I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Chapter 20:  
Liberated

"Come on, give everything that you got." Rushing forward, Kiba went at his opponent. When he got close his attempted attack was avoided as his adversary stepped to the side and allowed him to pass by. The evasion came so unexpectedly that Kiba stumbled to the ground before he regained his footing. "Quit doing that. Why don't you actually block my attacks instead of moving out of the way?"

"Why waste energy to block your attacks when I can simply step aside?" questioned the opponent in a casual tone. "Especially since your moves are so predictable and are ease to dodge." That verbal jab only helped to further infuriate the Inuzuka boy as his face became red in anger.

"I'm sick of that nonchalant attitude of yours Shino. Take me serious or I swear that I'll make you regret it." All he got from the bug user was him readjusting his sunglasses which only further irritated his teammate. A fight would certainly have taken place if it wasn't for someone stepping in.

"Please, no fighting you two." pleaded the third member of the team, Hinata Hyuga. "This is only a training session. There's no need to get angry with one another." Thankfully her appeal did the trick as it stopped her two teammates from going at it. To be more precise, it stopped Kiba from going after Shino, who didn't change his demeanor in the slightest.

"Let's call it a day." Stretching his arms out, Shino's insects started to gather around him. Slowly they returned their host as they went up his sleeves. Obviously they had been used during the sparring match and those there had to move around from the bugs crawling on them. That even included Akamaru who avoided a small swarm of bugs going over him.

"Damn it Shino. Keep your bugs from me and my dog." insisted Kiba who was repeatedly trying to swat at a few bugs that were flying around him. Even Hinata was trying to keep the constant insects that were around but wasn't trying to kill them as not to offend Shino in anyway.

Gratefully, all of the insects finally hid themselves within Shino without much incident. "Maybe if the both of you were to take more baths you wouldn't smell of something that would attract them." the Aburame boy retorted. Unlike last time though, Kiba managed to keep himself calm before anymore bickering could continue.

"Let's just go back to the village. It's late and I for one am tired." That was the similar thought that went for the others as all of them headed home but as they were going, the dog user decided to do a bit of teasing. "Besides, Hinata needs to get home to get her stuff ready for her temporary change of residence." In response, Hinata only blush hotly and being unable to speak.

**00000000**

"Are you sure that you're okay with this?" inquired Hinata.

"Absolutely." acknowledge Naruto. "I told you that it was completely all right when I suggested it in the first place. So don't worry about it."

While Naruto tried to do away with Hinata's concerns it wouldn't be successful as she still seemed to be uncertain. "You may say that I can't help but feel as though I'm intruding by-"

"Staying at my home?" Naruto finished for his friend. "You don't need to worry about feeling like you're intruding. Your father and most of the Hyuga family have gone to Kumo to talk about the possible connection that they may have had with the whole Mizuki incident."

The recalling of that unpleasant incident brought a shudder from Hinata. Even though it had been a while since it happen she could still remember how it felt being held captive and not able to do anything about it. To this day she was thankful of both her and her sister, Hanabi getting out of that whole situation safely. Another thing that she was grateful for was the unexpected arrival of Fox. Why he was there and why he would save her was a mystery to her but she wasn't complaining.

"Besides, I can somewhat understand wanting to get away from such a lonely place while your cousin was there as well." Naruto had originally wanted to use more colorful language while referring to Neji but compose himself as Hinata wouldn't take kindly of him saying such things. "So while you're here I want you to consider this as your home."

That gesture, though simple, deeply touch Hinata. Acting without thinking, she leaned forward and wrapped her arms around her friend to give him a hug. Caught off guard from such a move, Naruto stood there in complete shock. What happened next though was what really turned him for a loop.

"You feel good Naruto." Hinata almost purred. She even rubbed the side of her face against his chest. Finally regaining his composure he pulled her friend away. It was around that time that Hinata came to her senses as well. "I-I'm s-sorry, Naruto." she quickly apologize. "I don't know what came over me."

"It's all r-right." reassured Naruto. Try as he might, the spiky haired demon host couldn't keep the blush from coming over his face. "But I should warn you. If you have to, at anytime, have to change or something along those lines, make sure that the door is locked and the windows are covered. Wouldn't want that perverted godfather of mine trying to peek at you."

"Jiraiya wouldn't do that." Hinata disputed. "Especially with you're here as well, Naruto." Suddenly a small devious smile that wasn't accustomed of Hinata came over her face. "But if it was you who…" She allowed the rest of the comment to be unsaid but it was clear what she was referring to.

Once again Naruto blushed but managed to suppress most of it. "Well, maybe you're right. But I have a good idea on what that old pervert is doing right at this moment."

**00000000**

At another part of Konoha a sneeze could be heard. The sneeze was from none other than Jiraiya. _"Apparently someone is talking about me. Probably it's some beautiful young lady that I met."_ Returning to why he was there he looked through a hole in a fence to see the women's hot springs. _"My, what magnificent young ladies we have here."_ This went on for a while longer until the white haired man spoke up. "Are you going to show yourself or are you going to stay hidden?"

For a moment it seemed like Jiraiya was mistaken. That was proven wrong as emerging from a mass of swirling leafs was Kakashi Hatake. "You do know that such a thing is considered as immoral?"

"It's all in the name of research." the author argued his case. "This helps me to get the material I need for my stories. Now are you going to tell me why you're here or are we going to play a game of twenty questions?"

"I wanted to discuss with you about someone." It was no doubting that by Kakashi's tone that he was serious. "Someone who has wild blond hair, blue eyes and known to be very energetic." Turning around, Jiraiya prepared himself for what's to come. "Mind telling me what's going on with Naruto?"

"What's with the sudden questioning? Does it have something to do with what happen at the Land of Waves?" Jiraiya asked offhandedly. "From what I heard the mission went well." Obvously there's was more that the jonin wanted to talk about and the older man hoped that he would be able to give him the answers.

"Mind explaining on how a powerful poison that was strong enough to incapacitate Kurenai Yuhi for a while when it had no affect on him? Also him being able to create shadow clones. A jutsu that jonin are unable to do."

"The kid's just peculiar like that." Jiraiya casually remarked. "He also has larger chakra reserves than some adults could ever have." _"We could thank the nine-tailed fox for that."_ That last part was of course said to himself. "There have been cases of people even younger than Naruto being even stronger."

"That's true." Kakashi agreed. "But that doesn't explain how someone like Naruto, who was at the bottom of his class, was able to beat Sasuke Uchiha in a match, even when he went against the Sharingan."

I thought that you weren't one of those people who judges the skill of a person by what they're born with or who they're family are." Jiraiya wasn't trying to change the subject as this topic was something that he felt strongly about. "It's the person themselves that makes the difference."

"That doesn't answer my question." Once again, Kakashi showed that he wasn't going to let the topic go.

"Probably the win was nothing more than luck. Naruto may not want to admit it but someof his successes comes from luck." Letting out a sigh the white hair man was reaching his end when it came to this conversation. "Besides, I don't pry into the boy's life and he feels the same when it comes to what I do."

"So he wouldn't know about you keeping taps on your old teammates?" Unableto stop himself, Jiraiya's right eye twitched. It was small but not missed.

Knowing that any chance of him truly enjoying further research was shot, the perverted author prepared to leave. "Listen here Kakashi. You may have a history with the boy's family that doesn't mean that you need to know everything about Naruto. What you see is what you get when it comes to him." There was mostly truth behind what Jiraiya said as he felt that Kyuubi was just somethingthat Naruto was force to bare.

"He's just some teenager who's trying to find his own place in the world. So in other words let it go." Having enough, Jiraiya took his leave. Had he looked back he may have noticed that Kakashi apparently wasn't going to let the issue drop.

**00000000**

A Day Later…

"I'm telling you something is up with her." said Naruto.

"Now when you say that, what do you mean, exactly?" questioned Shikamaru.

"It's kind of hard to explain. To be honest, the best way to explain it is that she's different. It's almost as though she's a different person."

"Come on you guys. Let's be realistic here." advice the third member of the group, Choji. Not like the last meeting that Naruto had with Shikamaru, having the Akimichi boy there was all right. The three of them were currently at one of Choji's favorite restaurants. "This is Hinata we're talking about. How much of a change could there be?"

"Oh, there you are." Appearing from behind the seats that the three of them were sitting in was the person that the discussion was about. Moving around Hinata sat herself down pretty close to Naruto. "You don't know how glad I am to have found you. I've been looking for you everywhere." Hinata would blush, which wasn't all that uncommon for her. However, what took the three boys by surprise was the somewhat seductive look that she was trying to give the blond.

"My, its sure is hot here." With only the slightest bit of hesitation, Hinata unzipped her bulky jacket and took it off. This was a surprise as Hinata hardly ever removed her jacket, no matter the situation. As a matter of fact, none of them could remember the last time that their friend had even left her jacket unzipped. "Ah, now that feels better." Hinata would go ahead and smoothed out her shirt and as she did so, Naruto couldn't help but notice something.

"_I haven't notice before but Hinata has really…grown."_ Immediately realizing what he just thought, Naruto scolded himself. _"What am I thinking? Something must've happen to her and I better find out what it is."_ "Uh, Hinata, do you mind getting some drinks?"

"Sure I'd do whatever you ask Naruto." Before leaving though, Hinata gave his arm a light squeeze before leaving.

"Do you see what I mean?" Naruto asked when the Hyuga girl was out of hearing distance. "Try to tell me that such a change is normal. Especially, when it's someone like Hinata?"

Much like how he had been reacting from what had been going on, his two friends were caught completely off guard what they've just witness. It was such a shock that Choji actually allowed a piece of his food to fall from his chopsticks.

"Um, I'll see what I can find out." informed Shikamaru regained his composure. "It'll be troublesome but I'll do it anyways. However, if there is something that has cause Hinata to act like she is, how do we actually reverse it?" Not knowing what to say, Naruto sat there in thought.

**00000000**

Currently asleep, Naruto was unaware of the world around him. Lying in his temporary bed, that being the living room couch, he would occasionally mumbled a few incoherent words and a bit of drool came from the corner of his mouth. Naruto was so out of it that he wasn't aware of someone making their way toward him.

"Naruto, wake up." whispered someone in a quiet tone. After a few more attempts the boy finally started to come out of dreamland. Once he regained enough of his senses and vision cleared up, Naruto discovered who it was that woke him up and to say that he was shock would be an understatement.

Straddled on his lap was his guest, Hinata. "H-Hinata? Wh-What are you d-doing?" Thankfully, Naruto managed to keep his voice down. If Jiraiya was to see the two of them in such a predicament he wouldn't hear the end of it. Looking at his friend he saw that Hinata was wearing a thin lavender shirt that went down to mid thigh and it was impossible to tell what else she had on and despite himself, Naruto was a bit interested at what it could be.

Getting rid of such thoughts he tried to get her off of him but to his chagrin she wasn't cooperating. "Hinata, get off. What's with you?"

"I can't hide it anymore." muttered Hinata. "I need you Naruto." Hearing that stopped the blond from trying to create more space between him and his friend as the shocked at what he said. "I don't know why I'm like this all of sudden. Before I would be too nervous and shy to say such things but for some reason I feel somewhat liberated. So, I'm not going to let this opportunity pass me by."

Though she said she wasn't shy, Hinata couldn't keep the blush from coming over her face as she press herself closer to him. "I care deeply about you, Naruto All I want is to be closer to you. Please allow me to have that."

For his part, Naruto didn't do anything as he just lay their on the couch as Hinata snuggled up against him. In the process it caused the Hyuga girl's body became more identifiable to him. That combined with the words that she said continuing repeating in his head, Naruto couldn't deny that it was having an affect on him. His first instinct was to give the girl what she asked and wrap his arms around her. But in the end he thought twice about it.

Letting out a heavy sigh, Naruto pushed Hinata back to a sitting position. "Sorry. We can't do this. Something has happen to you and it's making you think differently than you usually would."

"So what if there is?" asked Hinata. "What does it matter if there was something that's making me think and act this way?" With each passing word she became more emotional. "As long as it allows me to be this open I don't care. Tell me, Naruto. Do you care about me? More than a friend I mean. If not, then could you?"

Such words were flooring Naruto as he had no idea how to respond. _**"What are you waiting for?"**_ questioned a voice that only Naruto could hear and knew quite well. _**"Take her now and give her the **_**feeling**_** that she craves."**_ Kyuubi 'suggested'.

"_Shut up you overgrown fur ball."_ Naruto mentally retorted. _"This has nothing to do with you. So stay out of this."_ To his surprise but also relief, the nine-tailed fox conceded to his request. He would soon forget about that as he saw Hinata start to sway a bit and her eyes started to glaze over.

Before could ask what was wrong, she collapsed back on top of him. "Come on Hinata. Get off me." No reply came from the girl in question. "Okay, this isn't funny. You can quit it now." Again there wasn't any response. "Hinata? Come on, wake up. Wake up!"

* * *

I bet you readers didn't expect some of the things that happened here. Having Hinata reacting react like she did was something that I had fun doing. It was almost like I was doing a different character. Don't worry about waiting to find out why for her sudden change of attitude as the next chapter explains thing.

In the end I hope that you liked how the chapter turned up and continue to check it out. I hope to have the next chapter out by the early part of November, definitely before Thanksgiving. So, until then, see ya.


	21. Struggle

Well, here is the second half of the two part of this particular moment of "One and the Same". There'll be things that I found interesting to write in this chapter and I hope that you feel the same while reading it. Now, as for the usual disclaimer, I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Chapter 21:  
Struggle

"How is she?" asked Naruto. Seeing the seriousness of the situation that happen he quickly called for help. Jiraiya would answer the call and thankfully put a halt to any taunting that he may have wanted to say when he saw the condition of the Hyuga girl. That led them to where they were now at as they stood in the hospital hallway and looking through a window into a medical room. The room was currently occupied as lying on the hospital bed was an unconscious Hinata.

"Not really sure." answered Jiraiya truthfully. "Had this happen a couple days ago this would've been a first. However, reportedly there have been cases of people being emitted who were acting similar to how Hinata was acting."

"You mean they were being more…assertive?" The mere thought of that was both funny and disturbing at the same time for Naruto.

"Well, not exactly. It's been said that the people were acting not like themselves before losing consciousness. It was almost as though they were liberated from the things that kept them from saying or doing what they wanted." Jiraiya paused to allow the information to sin in. "Does that sound familiar?"

"_It's sounded like what happen with Hinata. No way that's a coincidence."_ "It'll be pointless to ask if the cause of the whole thing is, would it?" Naruto didn't bother to hear what Jiraiya was saying as he had a good idea what the answer would be. He didn't take real notice when his godfather left. All that Naruto really cared about was the wellbeing of his friend.

Unfortunately, the world didn't see fit to allow him to do so as he heard some of the medics were frantically working on someone being stretcher in. "We got another one here. That makes it the tenth one so far." Unable to help himself, Naruto peered over to see who the preson might be and when he did he was surprised.

"Kiba." Indeed the person was Kiba Inuzuka who was unconscious. Having a good idea what happen he had to be sure. Seeing his mother, Tsume and older sister Hana nearby, Naruto decided to do some investigating. "Sorry if I'm intruding. I'm a friend of Kiba's. Can I ask what happen?" There was a bit of hesitation from the two Inuzuka women but they would concede.

"We're not exactly sure." informed Tsume. Worry was clearly evident in the mother's voice. "He was acting unusual then went unconscious. Do you know what it could be?"

"I'm afraid not. However, he's not the only one as there have been others. Sadly one of those people happens to be Hinata Hyuga." The mentioning of the Hyuga girl's condition brought a bad taste in Naruto's mouth. "Did he happen to go somewhere or do something different that could've led to this happening?"

"Really can't think of anything." told Hana. Like her mother, she was worried about her little brother but she tried to keep up a brave front. "Kiba pretty much did his usual routine that he always does. Although, he did mention one time about his team practicing at some new place that they happen to discover."

That bit of info caught Naruto's attention. "You don't say. Would you happen to know where this place might be, would you?"

**00000000**

"All right, this is the place." Once getting what he needed from the two Inuzuka women, Naruto took off to the place that they mentioned. Wanting to not go there completely unprepared he went in his demon form, Fox. At first glance the place didn't look suspicious as it appeared to be like any other wide open forest area. "There has to be something here. If only I knew what I was looking for."

"That would make it too easy, wouldn't it?" The sound of someone else's voice immediately put him on alert. Quickly turning around, Fox spotted the person and recognize who it was. But just because he knew who it was it didn't mean he was going to let his guard down. "Don't worry. I didn't come here to fight you. I'm actually here to help."

Allowing himself to ease up a bit, Fox kept a close eye on the person. "What do you mean? Helping with what?" Though he had a good idea why he was there, Fox wasn't about to reveal everything that he knew.

"The cause for all the strange things that have been happening lately." answered person calmly. "Too many people are suffering from the same thing to be a coincidence. Even both of my teammates are in the hospital and who knows if they'll ever recover."

Noticing the tone that was behind the person's voice, Fox couldn't help but be a bit amuse. "Now isn't this a sight. I never thought that I would see someone from the Aburame family show so much emotion." The opportunity to further the teasing was there but wasn't done since in a way Fox felt the same way. "If you want to help then so be it. But first answer this question. What exactly happen when your team was last here, Shino?"

To Fox's luck, Shino didn't take notice of the fact that his name was known without telling him. Now wouldn't be a good time for someone discovering his other self. It would only lead to unwanted problems and that was something that Fox didn't want to deal with at the moment.

"I was training with Kiba while Hinata watched." recalled Shino from the incident. "When we were done we decided to head back. There was nothing unusual." Unfortunately that didn't give anything of real use.

"Come on. There has to be more." Fox somewhat complained. "You must've missed something."

"No I haven't." Shino shot back in a calm but in some way annoyed voice. "That is all that happen. When it was time to leave I called by bugs back and we left." Something must've clicked for Shino as he went back to his usual quiet self and didn't move for quiet sometime.

Before it could be asked what was going on, a light buzzing could be heard. The buzzing would stop as soon as it started and when it did, Shino started to go over to somewhere. Becoming curious, Fox followed though from a safe distance. No words were spoken from either of them and this continued until they came to a small alcove that contained some strange flowers.

They were all the same as the pedals were a yellow color with reddish-orange trim and with some type of bud in the middle. Another thing that was peculiar was that the flowers were seemingly leaning themselves toward the two boys all of their own. It was almost seemed as though the flowers had a mind of their own.

"Those flowers aren't normal." acknowledged Shino. "My insects said that there's something strange about them when they came across them."

"So you're saying that your buys have been in contact with these things?" asked Fox. Sh8ino confirmed it by nodding his head. "Then is it possible that your buys got whatever is in these flowers and spread it to your teammates?"

"It's possible." Shino reluctantly agreed to the theory. "Then how do you explain how all of the other people got affected?"

"We'll figure that out later. For now we need to get this know. Go to the hospital and tell them all about it." Reaching over, Fox pulled one of the flowers from the ground. "I'm going to get this thing checked out."

**00000000**

"Is there someone back here?" After hearing something moving around, Ino opened the door to her family's plan nursery and took a look around. Though she didn't see anyone it didn't shake off the feeling that someone was in the room and was watching her.

Ino knew that it wasn't the smartest thing to do but couldn't help herself. Stepping further into the nursery she tried to see anything that may have been out of the ordinary. "I guess I must've just been hearing things." Turning around Ino was about to leave but jumped back in shock when someone suddenly stepped in front of her. Before she could let out a scream the person clamped their hand over her mouth.

"Calm down. I mean you no harm. Now I'm going to remove my hand and you're not going to yell. Nod your head if you understand." Thankfully, Ino nodded her head. "Slowly the person removed his hand and Ino luckily didn't yell. "I need your help. You know who I am right?"

"You're Fox." Ino verified after regaining enough of her composure. "Why should I help you? You sneak in here and tell me what to do. Why should I do whatever is that you want me to do?"

"Because many lives could end up dead if you don't." That stopped any kind of retort that the girl may have had came up with. "I'm here because your family knows a lot about plants and I need that knowledge now." Reaching into his pouch Fox pulled out a small plastic bag and inside of it was the same flower that was discovered earlier.

"I believe that this thing is the caused so many people to be infected." He tossed the bag to Ino. "You and your family need to figure out what you can about that flower. Whatever you find out give it to the people at the hospital." Having said all that he wanted to say, Fox started to head for the exit.

"Wait." shouted Ino. "Why are you doing this? What purpose could you have by getting involved in this?"

Stopping but not turning around fox went ahead and give her a reasonable reason. "If nothing is done it could greatly harm Konoha and everyone within it." Fox would finally look over to the bleach blonde girl from over his shoulder. "I just want to try and make sure that doesn't happen. Wouldn't want people like you to have such a thing to happen to them, would we?" He followed that up by giving Ino an interested stare up and down her body. Realizing what he was doing, Fox quickly took his leave, completely missing the slightly flustered look that came over the Yamanaka girl's face.

**00000000**

"_Stupid. Why did I do that?"_ Ever since leaving Ino's place, Fox had been berating himself for acting like he did when he left. Putting that away for a later time, he focused on the real matter at hand. _"The Yamankas may figure out what the flowers are but who knows about finding a possible antidote."_ Stopping on top of a rooftop he tried to think the situation over.

"_Jiraiya said that basically all the medics were working on this problem but haven't really come up with anything. Even the 'great' Tsunade hasn't figured out how to cure the infected people."_ Clearly there were still issues between the medical specialist and the boy. Suddenly an idea came to Fox and when it did he wasn't all that thrilled about it. _"I'm so not going to like this."_

**00000000**

"My, isn't this a surprise?" Despite that he wasn't that eager to do it, Fox had decided to go through with his idea and it led him to being where he was. "What do I owe for this visit?" Standing by a nearby open window was a serious Fox who kept his sights on the other person in the room.

"Well, this'll come as a surprise but I came to ask for your help." The person didn't bother to hide the surprise from hearing that. "Trust me, I rather be anywhere else but here. But there's no other choice. Your help is needed, Kabuto Yakushi." Indeed the person that Fox was talking to was Kabuto, who used his own brother in an attempt to steal a scroll.

"You must've already heard about what's been going." All he got for confirmation was Kabuto nodding his head slightly. "Well, everyone who has extensive medical knowledge to find an antidote. From what I heard you're pretty good as a medical specialist. So, what I'm saying is that you should help. Maybe you'll think of something that they haven't figured out yet."

"That may be but why should I care?" wondered Kabuto with the same lay back attitude of his. "Why should I care if a few meaningless people die?"

An instant later, Fox had Kabuto slammed against the wall with one hand gripped tightly around the older boy's neck, his claws close to piercing the skin. "You should care." stated Fox angrily. "Because if you're not going to bother to help then perhaps I should take care of you now and eal with an annoying problem." He further explained by tightening his hold to point that a bit of blood started to trail down the traitorous Yakushi boy's neck.

Suddenly realizing what he was doing, Fox let go of Kabuto's neck and stepped back. "Personally you may not care what's happening but what about in the long run? Certainly you boss wouldn't want Konoha to be destroyed before getting whatever it is that he wants. Wouldn't you agree?"

"You wouldn't be wrong." Kabuto confirmed. He went ahead showed some of his medical skills by haling the wounds on his neck with a simple swipe of his hand. "My Lord does indeed have plans for this village, including it destruction. Of course, that's not for quite some time."

Nothing was aid between the two as it was the moment to know what the next thing was going to be done. "Why don't you tell me what's exactly going on?" For the next couple of minutes Fox explained the situation that was happening in Konoha.

**00000000**

"How could you allow such a thing to happen?" an upset Neji demanded to know. After 'convincing' Kabuto to help, Naruto returned to the hospital to check on Hinata. When he arrived he was greeted by her cousin, Neji Hyuga. Apparently it was thought that she needed someone to watch over her while she was unconscious. "Why didn't you try to prevent it from happening?"

"Didn't really have a say in the matter." retorted Naruto in an irritated tone. The boy was obviously getting fed up with the continuous berating. "After all, she became affected while she was with her team. Why aren't you bothering them instead of me?"

"Because it wasn't one of them that Hinata was staying with these past few days." shot back Neji without missing a beat.

"Is that what this is all about?" asked Naruto. Not backing down he got face to face with the Hyuga boy. "Are you upset that Hinata's sick? Or is it because when given the chance she chose to stay with me instead of being in her own home with you in it?"

Although he didn't want to show it, that verbal jab really stung Neji. "And look at what good that did. She's probably going to die and you didn't do anything to stop it."

Less then a second after those words were said, Neji found himself being slammed against the wall as Naruto had a hold of his neck while with his free hand gripped one of his arms. "I'd watch what you say, Hyuga. Wouldn't want to repeat of what happen last time would we?" Naruto's tone lacked its usual carefree attitude. Instead, he was peaking with a voice that contained malice and content. "You remember what happen last time, don't you? I believe that I was about to stab you with a kunai before I was interrupted. Do you think that someone will stop me this time?"

Whether Naruto was going to actually go through with that subtle threat was unknown because someone did interfered before it actually could happen. "What's going on here?" At the doorway of the hospital room was Jiraiya and he was clearly confused at what he walked into. All he knew was that just before showing up he felt a strong feeling of a vile chakra.

A slight scowl on his face, Naruto let go of Neji. "Nothing's going on Jiraiya. Just talking is all." That be said he brushed past the older man as he left the room.

"Naruto, wait." Completely ignoring Jiraiya's words, the spiky haired boy continued to leave. _"What's up with him? Naruto wouldn't act like this. Not with the condition that his friends are in."_

The confusion that Jiraiya had was put on the backburner when he saw Tsunade talked heavily with a blond haired man with a young girl who seemed to be the man's daughter. Going over he realize that they were talking about what had been going on. When he got closer the three of them took notice of him. "What are you guys talking about?"

"Apparently we've discovered the cause for all of this craziness that has been going on." Tsunade showed her former teammate the strange flower that was in a container. "It's called the Nicodemus flower. Not much is know about it except that its spores can cause a person's basest instincts to come out. This goes on until they pass out from a fever. If not cured in time it'll result in…death."

Not even realizing it, Jiraiya glanced from the corner of his eye to where the unconscious Hinata was. _"Then that means that Hinata doesn't have much time left."_ "Then it's a good thing that you discovered what the cause was. Now you can make an antidote."

"Unfortunately, that's easier said than done." Tsunade begrudgingly informed. "There's no known antidote for such a thing. We're doing everything we can to create one though." Knowing the difficulty that was going to be the medical specialist rubbed the bride of her nose. _"What I wouldn't do for a bottle of sake right now."_ "Besides, it was these two that identified the flower. Let me introduce you to Inoichi Yamanaka and his daughter, Ino."

"Thank you, Tsunade." said Inoichi. "But we shouldn't be getting all of the thanks. My family did identify the flower but it was given to us by someone."

"It was that Person, Fox." continued Ino from where her father left off. "He gave me the flower and asked to find out what it was. However, I'm not sure but he appeared to be a bit strange. Like he was not acting like himself."

"Hearing that sent worry within Jiraiya and to a lesser extent Tsunade. They looked at each other and they knew that they were thinking the same thing. _"This could be bad. Very bad."_

**00000000**

"Finally found you." After hearing what the Yamanaks had to say, Jiraiya went looking for his spiky haired godchild. "It took a while but he was able to find him. "I've been looking for you everywhere. Perhaps I shouldn't be surprise to find you here at your private training area."

Naruto was indeed at the area that he usually used to train and that mostly involved in him being Fox. At the moment he was sitting on a branch of the tallest tree that was there. "Now how about we head back to the hospital? Does that sound good?"

For his part, Naruto didn't say anything. He didn't even look at him as he just stared out head. It was hard to tell if he even noticed the older man and it wasn't until he saw the boy looking over at him from the corner of his eye did Jiraiya know that he had Naruto's attention. "Listen, Naruto. We need to go so we can talk."

"Why do we need to do that?" One second Naruto was sitting on the tree branch and the next he was standing behind his legal guardian. "Here's good enough."

"_Something's off."_ Jiraiya recognize. _"He never was this fast before, even when he was in his demon for."_ "Naruto, we need to get you back to the hospital. You've probably been affected like everyone else."

"So what if I have? Like you actually care what happens to me." That caught Jiraiya off guard as he didn't expect that to be said. "Let's be honest. You only took me in because you felt obligated to do so for my father." As Naruto spoke it sounded as though he believed what he was saying for quite some time. "Who knows, maybe if things were different you would've consider me as a demon with a human in them and not the other way around."

"That's not true." Jiraiya quickly denied. "The affects of the Nicodemus flower are messing with your head. Otherwise you would never think such things were true."

"Or maybe you never knew what I was thinking at all." Naruto shot back, finally showing signs of anger. "You try to believe that what I'm going through but you can't. Honestly, sometimes I wonder what I really am. Am I Naruto Uzumaki, a boy trying to live his life?" Without any kind of warning he changed to his demon form. "Or am I really Fox, the human form of the nine-tailed fox, Kyuubi? I truly don't know."

"You're whoever you choose to be." stated Jiraiya. He needed to choose the right thing to say to keep things somewhat under control. "Just because you have a demon living within you it doesn't define who you are and what you want to be. You just have to want it."

"Perhaps you're right. When that was heard the white haired man was more at ease. "And you know what I want right now?" Sensing somewhat coming at him from behind, Jiraiya moved out of the way. The thing that he had sensed was discovered to be another Fox. Obviously one of them was a shadow clone. "I want to see how good I really am compared to you."

Not allow him the chance to register what he just heard; the two Foxes went after the man. On any other time Jiraiya would've easily dealt with such a situation but that wasn't the case here. _"What's going on here? He's never been this tough to deal with before. What makes now any different?"_ As the fight went on he notice that a thin layer of what appeared to be red chakra was covering the two look-alikes. _"So, that's the reason. I guess I'll have to use it after all."_

Putting his plan into action he bit one of his thumbs. Performing the necessary hand signs he slammed his hands down. "Summoning Jutsu." Appearing on either side of Jiraiya was two toads that were two toads that were as tall as he was. The toads went to work and were able to wrap their tongues around the two Foxes. They tried to free themselves but found it impossible.

"No point trying to escape." informed Jiraiya. With the situation now being more to his liking he was able to be a little more at ease. "YOU won't be able to move around that much. At least not enough to do any hand signs or escape." Going into his pocket he pulled out a small square piece of paper. Written on the paper were some strange markings. "I had hoped that I wouldn't have to use such a thing on you but there's no other choice."

He went ahead and placed the paper on one of the Foxes' foreheads. It didn't appear like anything was happening. That would soon change as slowly the red chakra started to disappear. Not long after it was gone so was the other Fox, which was revealed to be the shadow clone. By the time that the paper did whatever it was that it was suppose to do it caused him to pass out and reverted back to Naruto.

"You really are more trouble than you're worth." Going ahead and having the toads go away; Jiraiya picked up the unconscious Naruto and placed him over his shoulder. "But I guess that's just one of the things that make you who you are."

**00000000**

"At last, you're awake." Jiraiya was referring to was the now conscious Naruto who was sitting in his bed. "It's about time that you did. You've been out of it for half a day."

"Wh-What happen?" Naruto groggily asked. "The last thing that I remember is going to the hospital after getting Kabuto to help with figuring out what was going on. Everything else is a blur."

"Apparently when you took the Nicodemus flower to the Yamanakas you must've gotten affected by it. Long story short, you brought out more of the nine-tailed fox's chakra than usual. Fortunately I was able to stop you before anything bad could happen." It was then that Jiraiya showed him the same type of paper that he used earlier. 'The seal that's on this paper can be used to repress that chakra in case you lose control."

"What about everyone else? Are they okay?"

"Everyone's fine." Jiraiya reassured. "Mostly everyone that could be saved was and that includes your friends."

Letting out a breath that he didn't notice that he was holding Naruto became calmer. "Thank goodness. I'm glad to hear that. How did you guys find the cure?" From the look that Jiraiya was giving him he had a feeling that he wasn't going to necessary like what he was going to hear.

**00000000**

"I was wondering if you would actually show up or not." commented Kabuto in a casual tone. "I guess I shouldn't be surprise that you did."

"Like before, Fox showed up at Kabuto's home to talk and get some answers. "Can you blame me? When I found out that you were the one who discovered the cure and saved all those people. To say that I was surprise would be an understatement."

"It wasn't that hard really. You happen to mention that an Aburame's insects were one of the causes of the flower's spores to spread. If so then why weren't the Aburames affected as well? After some research we found the reason and used it to create an antidote."

"That was very clever of you." acknowledged Fox which had a trace of sarcasm behind it. "Hopefully they'll be no need to use it since all the flowers have been destroyed. However, there's something that's been bothering me. How did the Nicodemus flower show up in Konoha all of a sudden? If it simply grew they would've been discoverer before now. Maybe someone planted them. If you know what I mean."

"Are you trying to imply that I had something to do with that so called theory of yours?" questioned Kabuto. By how he was talking it was impossible to tell if he felt offended or not. "Why would I do such a thing?"

"Don't know. But I never said that you had anything to do with it." Nothing else was needed to be discussed between the two Fox decided to take his leave. He was about to go out the window but decided to say a few parting words. "Of course, I never said that you didn't have anything to do with it." Fox didn't look back as he left but if he did he may have saw the irritated look that was on Kabuto's face.

**00000000**

"Order whatever you want you guys." Naruto announced. "Everything is on me."

"You're picking up the tap?" asked a surprise Choji. "Ladies and gentlemen, hell has frozen over." That being said the Akimichi boy headed for the line to get his food as the others went to get a booth to eat. "You do realize that you're going to lose a lot of money because of this?" stated Shikamaru.

"Mostly likely but it's worth it. After all, we're here to celebrate the full recovery of our friend Hinata." It had been a few days since the whole incident with the Nicodemus flowers and all those who survived had fully recovered and that included the Hyuga girl in question.

"This isn't really necessary." implored a slightly embarrassed Hinata. "It's no big deal."

"You're wrong. It's a big deal." Naruto argued. "You could've died but thankfully you didn't. We can at least celebrate what we almost lost. Is that too much to ask?" Gratefully there wasn't any argument from the girl. It was around that time that Choji rejoined them. "Have to admit though, seeing you act like you did was interesting. Doing and saying what you wanted was a sight to see."

Whetherit was meant to or not, Naruto's remark caused Hinata to blush so much that her entire face became a deep red. "Uh, Naruto. I didn't say or do anything unusual did I?"

Scratching the back of his head, Naruto tried to think back. "Not that I can recall." There was no way to tell if the blond was telling the truth or not. "The past couple of days are a bit hazy. There are moments that are a complete blank. Why do you ask? Is there anything that I should know about?"

"No. There's nothing." Hinata quickly answered. Her blush had gotten down but there was still a trace there. Not seeing the point in asking about it any further Naruto let the subject drop. Unnoticed by those two was that their two friends had been watching the whole scene unfold.

"Do you think that we should tell them everything that happen?' asked Choji quietly to his friend so to prevent from the others from hearing him.

"Don't bother." replied Shikamaru in a lazy tone. "There's no point in telling them what happen. If they remember on their own then so be it." Glancing over to the two in question he saw that they were involved in some kind of conversation. "Besides, doing so would be just troublesome."

* * *

So, was this an interesting chapter? Some of you may of already know this but yes, the Nicodemus flower was a reference to the one that was in the Smallville episode by the same name. There were some changes but nothing too over the top. Don't worry about the whole Naruto/Hinata situation. It'll be touch on as the story goes on.

As for the situation involving Kabuto. While Naruto and a few know that Kabuto should be arrested but there isn't any evidence to prove it without Naruto's secret being revealed.

That's pretty much the end of this chapter and I hope that you take the time to leave a review. Speaking of chapters, there'll be a few more original ones before I really focus on the Chunin Exam. As of now they'll be three more before this story goes to that particualr arc.

Well, that's pretty much it. So until next time, see ya and have a happy Thanksgiving.


	22. Impaired

Well, another chapter of my story is on . It's another original one that doesn't really reflect the events that happen in the actual series but it's a good thing since I don't want to be repetitive. Here's the chapter and of course, I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Chapter 22:  
Impaired

"Hurry up you idiot. They're getting away." What was Sasuke was talking about was that currently he and his one other teammate, Naruto were their pursuit after someone. Currently they and third team member were doing a mission. What the three of them were supposed to be doing was escorting a small caravan of traders to a nearby trading post. It sounded like such an easy mission that their jonin sensei, Kakashi Hatake allowed them to carry it out on their own which they were more than willing to accept.

Everything was running smoothly and it appeared as though they were going to complete it without the slightest bit of trouble. That would soon change as the caravan was ambushed. After the surprise of what had been going on it was determined that it was just one person who causing the whole confusion. It was unknown why the person was doing what they were doing until they spotted them quickly leaving the area with some kind of container tuck under their arm. With Sakura staying behind to tend to the people of the caravan, Naruto and Sasuke went after the person.

"I can see that they're getting away." retorted an annoyed Naruto. Though the blond hated to admit it he knew that the Uchiha was the more quicker and agile than him. "As long as we don't lose sight of the person we still have a shot at catching up. Now, unless you want to do this spontaneously then I suggest that you come up with a plan because I'm coming up blank."

"That's not surprising." Naruto didn't even bother to do a snap back with a retort as it was no point in doing so. Besides, he was someone who usually came up with something on the spur of the moment but that never always worked. "Listen. Here's what we're going to do."

**00000000**

"This seems to be far enough." After attacking the caravan, the bandit made a quick escape. There was of course being chased by two of three shinobi that had apparently been escorting caravan. Fortunately, they didn't seem to be that well experience as getting away from them wasn't all that difficult. Now, with no further distractions, the bandit was ready to open the container that had what they were looking for.

The bandit, on closer examination was a female with an athletic build and seemed to be in her mid thirties. She had brown eyes and light shade of the same color for hair that was in a simple ponytail that reached just pass her shoulders. What she was wearing was a dark blue shirt that was tucked into her black pants. Another thing about her that stood out was that strapped to her back appeared to be a katana that was between being long and short.

"I know that I was told not to look inside but I can't help but be curious at what could be so important to get. Especially, since I was paid a large sum to get it." There was an impressive series of locks on the container. They wouldn't be that much trouble to deal with but there was another obstacle. That being on various parts there were sutras that had a complex seal imprinted on them.

"_Great. I have absolutely no experience in dealing with seals. I guess my curiosity will be left unfulfilled. Oh well, at least me getting my money will be enough of a compensation."_ She was about to head off again until the sound of a branch being snapped could be heard. Instantly becoming alert she scanned the area. It wouldn't take her long to find out what the source was as one of the shinobi, to be clearer, Naruto showed himself. "Now isn't this a surprise. Don't shinobi usually try to operate while be unseen?"

Shrugging his shoulders, Naruto nonchalantly responded. "Well, I'm not your typical run of the mill shinobi. But I think that I'm the least of your worries." What the blond was talking about would be explained as from the side a windmill shuriken came right at her. Moving out of the way the shuriken was going to harmlessly pass her by. Or so she though, as right as it was passing her from behind it turned out to be another Naruto.

Taking the moment of surprise to his advantage, Naruto tried to make a grab for the container. He only managed to get his fingertips to touch it before he was stopped. How that happened was him being stabbed in the side with a dagger. Following the move up the bandit managed to toss Naruto over her shoulder and into the first one. When they collided the first blond went away in a poof of smoke while the one that was stabbed remained on the ground, proving that it had been a shadow clone the whole time while the other was the real one.

She wouldn't have long to think about it as Sasuke decided to make an appearance. With kunai in hand the Uchiha went at the target. "You're pretty impressive for a youngster. Perhaps you're even better than that friend of yours."

Whether he realized it or not, Sasuke allowed a smirk to come out when he heard that. "Of course I am. There isn't even a contest between the two of us."

"You don't say?" Reaching back she pulled out her katana. "Well, let's find out, shall we?" There was no words said but what was seen on Sasuke's face it was clear that he was more than willing to take her up on her offer.

**00000000**

While all of this was going on, Naruto remained on the ground, clutching on the handle of the dagger that was still in his side. Taking a deep breath he started to pull the weapon and continued until it was completely out. With a few haggard breaths he tossed the dagger away while with his other hand pressed it against the wound to slow down the blood flow. Naruto hoped that his quick healing would take care of the wound but that wasn't the case here.

"_I guess it's taking longer to heal than usual since I've never been stabbed like this before."_ speculated Naruto. Unable to do anything until his wound had mostly healed, the concealed demon host could only look on and watch as Sasuke fought against the bandit.

From what he could see neither could get a real advantage and it also seemed like Sasuke was not even using his Sharingan. Apparently, he thought that his opponent wasn't worthy of using his family's bloodline limit. _"Not surprising. It's to be expected from that arrogant prick." _

As things went on it seemed that Sasuke was starting to become frustrated by how things were going on. Deciding that close range fighting wasn't going to be useful he took a couple steps back. "Great Fireball Jutsu." Performing a series of hand seals Sasuke took a deep breath. He brought a hand to his mouth and began to exhale. However, it wasn't air that came out but instead it was a stream of fire.

The fire would reach the bandit and when it did it consumed her in a sphere of flames. Soon Sasuke stopped feeding the flames but the fire sphere still continued to go and would do so for a while. "That should take care of her."

"Are you deficient or something?" wondered an angry Naruto. He still wasn't able to get back up but was close to do so. "You just destroyed the item that was stolen along with the one who took it. We were supposed to bring both of them back. How are you going to explain this?" Though the blond was being completely serious, Sasuke maintained that egotistical side of himself.

"Simple. Just tell them that we had no other choice but to eliminate the target." By the way that Sasuke so casually about killing someone didn't sit that well with Naruto. To kill a person and think of it as being as simple as breathing brought a sickening feeling to his stomach. "Besides, the stolen container was said to be very durable. So it should still be in good condition."

"That's good to hear." exclaimed someone. It wasn't Naruto or Sasuke who said it but from the person the bandit. Looking immediately over to where the fireball and saw that it was slowly shrinking. The reason being that crouched down on the ground was the bandit but what really caught their attention was that her katana was seemingly sucking up the fire. Soon the flames were gone and with the exception of bits of her clothes being singed she appeared to be okay. Another thing was that the blade of the katana was now a fiery orange.

"Nice try there. You almost had me." There was a trace of taunting in her voice when she said that. "Unfortunately for you I had this." She was clearly referring to her katana. "This thing has a very interesting ability as it can absorb whatever jutsu that is sent his way while in the same time protects me. However, that's only part of what it can do." What she meant by that would be explained by action as slowly the fire that was within the blade came out and started to encircle it. "It allows me to use what it absorbed and sent it right back at the person."

The girl bandit followed what she said by straight after Sasuke who at the moment couldn't get himself to move. For a moment it appeared as though the Uchiha boy was going to meet his fate. Or so it seemed because something would go ahead and intervened. To be more accurate, it was someone. Just as she came down with a swing of her now flaming katana, Sasuke was pushed out of the way by Naruto. That didn't mean that he came out of it without getting harm as he was knocked to the ground that cause his head to hit the ground that possibly resulted in him getting a concussion.

None of this was noticed by Naruto as all he could tell was the sound of screaming. The screaming was close to being unbearable to hear by anyone there. If it wasn't for the blond being in intense pain he may have realize that those screams were coming from him.

**00000000**

"Okay now. Hold still." Doing as he was told, Naruto sat as still as he could. "You may feel something strange but don't worry, it's completely normal. This'll last only for a few minutes."

"That's fine by me." stated Naruto. There was a hint of worry in his voice but was trying to hide it. "Just do what you're known to do and I'll do whatever you tell me to do, grandma Tsunade."

A vein appeared on Tsunade's forehead at the nickname that she was given. She let it go do to the current situation. Allowing light green chakra surround her hand she placed it over the boy's injury. After a few minutes she let the chakra to fad away before dropping her hand down. "There's nothing that I can do." Tsunade regrettably announced. "The damaged that was received is too extensive to be fixed."

"That can't be true." disputed Sakura. "You're supposed to be one of the best medical specialists there is. There must be something that you haven't thought of that could help." She wasn't the only one who was hoping that was the case as in the room besides those three was Jiraiya, Shizune and Sasuke. All of those were there in one of the rooms of Konoha's hospital.

After the declared failed mission the three genin were sent to the hospital to be checked out. While Sakura hadn't suffered any injuries, the same couldn't be said for the other two. Luckily Sasuke only received a minor concussion from when his head hit the ground. However, Naruto was in a more serious condition. His life wasn't in jeopardy but his situation was still severe. That led to the conversation that was currently being had.

"I'm afraid not. Even with vast knowledge that I have there's nothing that I can do repair the damage that has been done." Though Tsunade was telling the truth she hated to admit it. "We just have to face the fact that what has happen could be permanent." Nothing was said but you could tell that what was said wasn't something that they wanted to hear. As before, Sakura was going to voice her dislike of the situation but was silenced by the one that the conversation was about.

"Don't worry, Sakura." Naruto attempted to reassure. "This is nothing for you to concern yourself about. Everything will be fine in the end. Trust me." Unfortunately, those words didn't help to settle the emotions that his pink haired teammate was feeling.

"How can you say that, Naruto? Especially since you're…" Sakura couldn't bring herself to say the rest as if saying it would somewhat confirm what had happen to her knuckleheaded friend.

"That I'm blind?" Naruto finished as though it was nothing special. The result of his unfortunate blindness was because of the flamed infused katana of the girl bandit being slashed at his face and specifically, around his eyes. Currently, Naruto had medical wrapping around his eyes. "Like I said, everything will be fine in the end. I promise."

"Could you please excuse us, Sakura and Sasuke?" asked Tsunade that was a hint of a order. After a bit of hesitation both of them left, leaving the wounded blond with the two medical specialists and his guardian. "Okay. You can stop the act Naruto."

"What do you mean? There isn't any kind of act."

"You can quit pretending that everything is going to be all right. Now why don't you tell us what's _really_ going on with you?" Silently both Jiraiya and Shizune were in agreement with that question as they too wanted to know what was going on.

Recognizing that there was no point of hiding it anymore, Naruto allowed his face to turn to a somber expression. "What's there to tell that hasn't been mentioned already? I saved a teammate from taking a hit but ended up getting it. The result is this." He pointed to his face. "The injuries to my face will heal in a couple of days. My eyes on the other hand, that's a different story."

"But what about the…" Shizune started to say before stopping to find the right words. "Couldn't it somehow help?"

"Believe me. I wish that was the case." Naruto stated with a bit of disappointment in his voice. "Kyuubi doesn't know if my eyes can be healed, even with his incredible healing ability that I inherited. To put it bluntly, it's unknown if I'll be able to see again."

An uncomfortable silence came over the room as none of them knew how to go from there. "It's fine really." Naruto tried to reassure. "It'll take more than losing my sight to stop me." He tried to keep a strong front but signs of him breaking down were obvious. "This is just something that I'll have to…adjust to." That brave front of his continued to breakdown to the point that tears started to flow down from underneath his bandages.

Quickly wiping away the tears he got back to something that he had wanted to ask. Also, it would help him to get his mind off of his current condition. "Were you able to identify the person that attacked the caravan?" The three older people there knew what Naruto was trying to do but let it slide as now wasn't the time to get into it.

"Yeah, we know who it is." reported Jiraiya. "From the description that both you and Sasuke gave us we were able to discover that the name of the person is Masami Tsukiko. A bandit that was last seen in Suna and is usually someone that is willing to steal anything for anyone as long as the money is good enough."

"That sounds about right." Naruto remarked. "What about the katana? Do you anything about it? More important, how to deal with it while fighting?"

"Pretty much what you told us is all that is known about it. Whatever jutsu that's being sent toward it the katana will just absorb it and turn it right back on them." Jiraiya stopped talking as he caught what the blond said. "Why are you asking anyway? You're not planning on going after her as you are?"

"Of course I wouldn't." Naruto answered. There was no way to tell if he was lying or not as he said it in an even voice. "I just thought that it would be nice if there was a way to go against it. Remember, there will be people going after Masami to get back whatever it was in that container."

"Let them worry about it." voiced Tsunade. She had a feeling that if the conversations continued to go the way that it was it would just lead to problems later. "Right now what we need to be concern about is how Naruto going to get himself around. There's no way that there'll be one of us to watch him."

"Excuse me but I never ask to have a babysitter." established Naruto with an annoyed tone in his voice. "I'm more than capable to take care of myself without help. But if it'll put you all at ease, then I have a proposal to make."

**00000000**

Days Later…

"Have you heard anything about how Naruto has been doing?" asked Choji to Shikamaru as they were at Ichiraku Ramen having something to eat. There team had the day off and was using it to rest up. "From what I heard he has already been release from the hospital but I don't know anything else."

"Your guess is as good as mine." established Shikamaru. "I haven't really heard anything from him since I heard what happen to him." The Nara boy tried to sound like he wasn't all that faze about it but it was clear that he was worried about his friend. "Even if Naruto has quick healing the injury that he sustained isn't something to take lightly. We probably won't be seeing him around here anytime soon."

"Am I going the right way?" asked someone that sounded similar to the person that the two friends were talking about. Walking down the street was Naruto and like Shikamaru and Choji, everyone was taking notice of the blond. Covering the Uzumaki boy's eyes was a pair of black sunglasses but that wasn't what caught everyone's attention. On top of Naruto's right shoulder was an orange skin toad that was wearing a blue vest. What was even stranger was that the toad was seemingly directing where the boy should be going.

""Yes you're going the right way." confirmed the toad. This just shocked the onlookers as they never heard a toad speak before. "I know where we're going. So just follow my directions and everything will be all right."

"Then how do you explain the previous two times that your directions led us to a dead end?" argued Naruto. "It's fortunate that you haven't led me into the river yet. "You're probably one of the worse guides there is, Gamakichi."

"Keep it up kid. Remember, I'm doing this as a favor to the old man whose good friends with my father. You continue with your complaints I'll just leave and let you to take care of your own." warned the toad, Gamakichi. "Don't think that just because you have a contract with my family that doesn't mean that we'll be following you obediently." Before a fight could start between the two of them, someone called out to them.

"Hey Naruto, what are you doing?" questioned Choji. Hearing a familiar voice, the blond turned to where he heard it and thankfully he was able to find his friends without any trouble. Nothing was said from the three of them with exception of Naruto ordering himself some food and even getting something for his amphibian companion. "Uh, not to sound inconsiderate or anything but what's the deal with you walking about with a toad?"

"Well, you've heard of seeing eye dogs. This is my seeing eye toad." There was no denying that had to be one of the weirdest things that any of them heard. "Lame I know but this was the only way that the old prevent and granny would allow me to go around without them chaperoning me around everywhere." he furthered explained as the orders that were made arrived. The two nicknames that he had used were referring to Jiraiya and Tsunade respectively.

"Why don't you create a shadow clone and have it lead you around." questioned Choji. "Wouldn't that make more sense?"

"It would." stated Shikamaru before the blond had the chance to say anything. "But there's a problem if that jutsu was used. Wouldn't you agree, Naruto?"

"As usual you hit the nail on the head Shikamaru." acknowledge Naruto. "I've learned that when a clone is created it picks up whatever damage that I had at that time. In other words, all a shadow clone would due is having another blind person going around and ones more than enough."

"Not to mention having only to deal with one Naruto." teased Choji. That was in all good humor and not meant to be insulting. "What do you plan to do about the upcoming chunin exam?"

That question instantly put away the mild humor that had been going among the group and turned it into a more somber mood. "What's there to talk about? I got a little under two weeks before they start and until then me and my team's chances of entering are up in the air. I think that Kakashi's thinking of having someone taking my place." Naruto clearly didn't like the possibility of that happening but the chances of that happening were pretty good. Soon Naruto as well as Gamakichi finished their food. After paying the bill the blond placed the toad back onto his shoulder before cautiously made his way out.

"He seems to be doing all right." voiced Choji as he and his friend watched the boy go. "Wouldn't you say so Shikamaru?" The only response that was given was Shikamaru letting out a small grunt

**00000000**

"_To be replace? Why not just go ahead and put me out of active shinobi duty altogether?"_ Nothing was said as Naruto headed off, the destination most likely being hope. Not even Gamakichi said anything, with the exception of warning his 'ride' to avoid running into someone or something. The walk was seemingly going to be uneventful but that would change.

"Well, look at what we have here." When he heard that it brought an annoyed groan from the sightless blond. Though he no longer had his sight, Naruto knew who the person who said that.

"_I so don't need this right now."_ Letting out an exhausting breathe he decided to get it over with. "What do you want Neji? I'm not in the mood for that obnoxious attitude of yours at this time."

Indeed the person was Neji Hyuga and he had a slight scowl on his face from that verbal jab. "I watch what you say Uzumaki. It would be wise of you to remember your betters."

"Please, no fighting." implored someone else that was there. That person was Neji's cousin, Hinata. She had been so quiet that Naruto hadn't even notice her being there. Whether that was because she was good at stealth or it was just her usual quiet self was unknown uncertain. "Naruto's in no condition to be fighting now."

"Thanks for the concern Hinata." thanked blind blond. "But don't worry. Even Neji, in his pompous attitude wouldn't be low enough as to attack someone who can't see." That seemed to be a good enough way to end the conversation. But a sly smile came over Naruto's face and when that happened it usually meant that he had something planned. "Who knows? Maybe this is his best chance for him to actually beat me."

"Be careful with your words around those who are your better." retorted Neji. He was able to keep that same compose attitude of his but small signs of it breaking down was seen. "Obviously it was more than your eyes that were injured. Otherwise you would realize that you would have no chance to beat me."

"You want to see and find out if that's true?" A fight was certainly going to take place between the two and it was anyone's guess on what was going to happen because of it. Gratefully it was stopped before it had the chance to start.

"What is going on here?" Coming into the scene was apprentice of Tsunade, Shizune and walking beside her was the pig TonTon. It didn't take a person with sight to know what the woman was feeling as even Naruto could tell that she wasn't happy at what she had witness. "You weren't actually thinking of fighting, were you Naruto?" The boy didn't even try to deny it since it was obvious that was what was happening. Sighing, Shizune grabbed onto Naruto's arm and started to pull him away from the scene. "You're coming with me and there's no room to argue."

"You should consider yourself fortunate that she intervened when she did Uzumaki." exclaimed Neji as his agitator left. "Otherwise fate would've seen fit for you to lose."

That put a stop to Naruto's reluctant departure. Freeing his arm from Shizune's grasp, he turned his head in the general direction that the Hyuga boy was. "Fate you say? Tell me something Neji. Why is it that even with those all seeing Byakugan eyes of yours why is your vision so clouded? Allowing the so called fate to decide the course of your life is pathetic. I may be blind but I can still see the future and you know what? The future has yet to be set. So anything can happen."

There was nothing more that Naruto had wanted to say as he just turned around walked off with both Shizune and the two animals joining him. After doing nothing but watching the group going for a while, Neji walked off as well but in the opposite way. As all of them left, Hinata the one remaining person was torn at which way he should go. In the end she went to join with her cousin since she had originally been with him. However, as she went to catch up with him she looked over her shoulder where her friend had left.

**00000000**

"Were you actually going to fight that Hyuga boy if I didn't show up?" asked Shizune after leaving that whole scene from a few moments ago. "Did you even think about what could've happen if you actually tried to do that?"

"Honestly, I didn't." Naruto answered truthfully. The blond wasn't even trying to get away as he just followed the sound of the older woman's footsteps. "It's no secret to anyone that Neji and I aren't friends. How he treats certain members of his families is only one of the things that make me not like him."

Unseen by the boy was that there was a slight smile that came over the woman's face. "Does one of the family members involve the girl that was also there?" Naruto's silence was all the clarifying that Shizune needed. _"Now isn't that interesting? Those two would certainly make a cute couple."_ "But you have to realize that the chances of you winning a fight in your condition are unlikely."

"Hey, just because I'm blind that doesn't mean that I can't take care of myself. Despite what some people believe." There wasn't need to elaborate any further as it was clearly known what people that the boy was referring to. "Besides, there are certain circumstances that'll prevent anything life threatening from happening to me." What Naruto was referring to was expanded as he padded his stomach or more exact, the seal that helped contain the nine-tailed fox, Kyuubi.

Understanding what he meant by that, Shizune said nothing more about it. "Let's go ahead and keep what had happen today to ourselves. Wouldn't you agree?" Naruto merely smiled at her as they continued with their walk in silence.

**00000000**

"So, how are we going to tell him?" asked Jiraiya. He was talking with Tsunade in the apartment that he and Naruto shared. What they were talking about an event that took place a while ago. "You know he'll want to know about what happen."

"Who says that we have to tell him at all?" Tsunade questioned. "It wouldn't make things any easier for him if he knew about what's taken place. Actually, it may just make things more difficult."

Hearing his once teammate was even suggesting seem to only anger Jiraiya. "You can't actually be thinking of doing that. Naruto has every right to know about everything."

"Know about what?" From the hallway was Naruto with Shizune only a step or two behind him. "What are you guys going on about? And don't even try to deny it." He got nothing but silence. "Tell me what's going on."

"It's about Masami Tsukiko." stated Jiraiya. That quickly put a halt to whatever tirade that Naruto had planned to go on about. "From what's been heard she broken into a medical building and stole some medical supllies. Luckily there hasn't any serious injuries reported."

"Why would she do that?" thought Naruto. "There has to be a reason why she would do such a thing." Again he got nothing but silence. "There's more, isn't there." He concluded. "There's something that you haven't told me yet. Something that involves what was in the container that Masami stole from that caravan."

"Very perceptive of you." muttered Tsunade but not being all that pleased about it. "We managed to discover that what was inside of the container were ingredients for a powerful medicine. However, it was only some of the items that are needed. From what has been reported to be stolen were some of the remaining ingredients." A thoughtful look would come over the woman's face before she continued. "However, there are still some things that are required before the medicine can be completed. For what purpose that she wants such a medication is anyone's guess."

"That's good news isn't it?" voiced Shizune. "Why don't we just stakeout the place that the items that Masami are and hope to get lucky?"

"That's a great idea." Naruto was quick to agree. "Do we already know where such places are?" In what was seemingly becoming repetitive, he got nothing but silence. "Come on. If we act now there's a good chance for us to stop her before she is able to cause more harm. I'll be able to stop her before anyone else can get hurt."

"You can be serious?" wondered Tsunade with disbelief clearly in her voice. "There's no way that you're going to do such a thing in your present condition."

"Well, excuse me but you have no right to tell me what to do. Only the old pervert can tell me what to do and even then I hardly do so." Jiraiya didn't even bother to admonish the boy for the unwanted nickname as now wasn't the time. "Apparently everyone has forgotten that I'm blind, not dead. I might not be able to see that doesn't mean that I can't do something. That's just how _I_ am." Becoming agitated, Naruto let out a frustrated groan he turned around and was ready to leave. Before leaving he leaned down and had his 'guide' Gamakichi climb onto his shoulder.

When the blond haired demon vessel left both Jiraiya and Shizune turned their sights to the light blonde medical specialist. "What? I didn't do anything. I don't know why he acted so hostile toward me. He's been like that ever since we've met. Who knows what his problem is."

"Because he believes that you think of him not as a human." expressed Jiraiya. "Don't you remember what you said when you first met him?" Tsunade just gave him a baffled look. "You said that after you were able to help that girl Isaribi, you said that she's able to do what he does. That being them trying to be human." Again the well-endowed woman didn't see the problem.

"You've got to remember that he's just a teenage boy who recently just discovered that a vicious fox demon sealed within him. When you said that it sounded to Naruto that you thought he was pretending to be human." Finally it seemed like Tsunade was getting what the white haired man was trying to get through to her. "I remember that when he was affected by the Nicodemus flower he questioned whether he was Naruto Uzumaki or just the Kyuubi in human form. Who knows how long he's been having those types of thoughts."

"I guess we've forgotten that though he tries to act like an adult he's still a teenager." established Shizune. She couldn't help but recall the moment when she forgotten how young Naruto was due to how serious he talked at times. _"Apparently learning that you got a demon fox sealed within you will make you grow up quicker than you usually would."_ "Even now, despite not being able to see he's willing to do whatever he can do to help. Even if it means that he has to put his life in jeopardy."

"Yeah, he'll probably do such a thing." Tsunade added. "It's still amazes me at how similar that he is to his parents were at that age. Hopefully it doesn't result in him experiencing the same fate as they unfortunately did."

* * *

That's it for this chapter. I hope that you readers liked it. Can't really be sure if you did or not since apparently I didn't get that many reviews in the last few chapters. I'm not really complaining since my story has been put on a lot of alerts and but on favorite stories list but I haven't gotten that much feedback. Reviews will be really appreciated since I'd know if I was doing good with this story and if there's anything that I should work on.

As for this chapter, the conclusion this particular part of this story will be in the next chapter. That chapter will most likely be out early January but might be possible to have it out before Christmas although I won't bank on it. So, until then, see ya and have a happy holidays.


	23. Alternative

Well, I hope that you guys had a good holdiay and a new year. Along with the new year, comes the next chapter of "One and the Same" story. From the reviews that I got I see that there are people who believe that Naruto has permanently lost his sight. Not saying that it isn't a possibility but you'll have to read the chapter to find out. That's all for this author notes, so enjoy the chapter and of course, I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Chapter 23:  
Alternative

"Are you sure that you should be doing this?"

"I'm sure as I can be." answered Naruto. "Currently he and his friend were at one of the training fields. They weren't the only ones there as the summoning toad, Gamakichi was beside the accompanying person. "Besides, if anyone gets in trouble it'll most likely be me. Honestly, do you expect someone to reprimand Hinata Hyuga, the next person to lead the Hyuga family?"

Yes, the person that was with the blond was his good friend Hinata. After leaving the apartment, Naruto had managed to get Hinata to join him to help him with something. That lead to where they were at the moment. "But why have you asked me to spar with you when you can't…"

"Can't see?" Naruto finished what his friend left unsaid. "Though I'm blind that doesn't mean that I can't find…alternative ways to fight." Going into a fighting stance he readied himself. "And I can't think of a better way to find out what those ways could be then with one of my closest friends." Unbeknownst to Naruto was that a faint blush came over his friend's face. "So what do you say, Hinata? Are you interested in helping?"

Pushing down her blush, Hinata went into her family's traditional Jyuuken style. "All right Naruto. I'll do as you ask. I hope that you don't hold it against me after it's all said and done."

"I would never do that Hinata. Just don't show any hesitation and don't hold back because of what has happen to me. You do that and I'll be greatly appreciative." When he said that put Hinata a bit more at ease of what she was asked to do. "Come at me whenever you're ready." After only a few seconds of hesitation his friend went ahead and started the sparring.

**00000000**

Hours Later…

"Okay. Let's continue." Once again both Naruto and Hinata went at one another and the results ended up like they did before, which was Naruto being knocked to the ground. Though he had been knocked down many times before, he continued to get back up. "All right, one more time."

"Maybe we should stop Naruto." spoke Hinata. "We've been going at this for a while now and so far things haven't been progressing that much." Her words were seemingly going on deaf ears as the blond got back up and didn't appear to do as she suggested. "Perhaps this wasn't such a good idea."

"Oh come on Hinata." Naruto disputed. Once getting to his feet he dusted off his clothes and turned his direction to where the sound of his friend's voice had came from. He didn't even have his eyes open, though it wouldn't matter if they were, but was ready to resume at anytime. "I'm starting to get the hang of it and remember what they say. Practice makes perfect. Or maybe you're starting to worry that you can't beat me for much longer."

That got the hidden desired that the blind blond wanted. That being getting Hinata wanting to continue with their spar/testing. _"Apparently Naruto has had more of an influence on me that I thought. Otherwise I wouldn't be so quickly provoked in doing such a thing. Not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing though."_ Once again going into a Jyuuken stance the two friends went at one another yet again.

Needless to say the same thing happened over and over but something was happening that both he and Hinata became aware of. That being that it was becoming harder to take Naruto down. He was even able to at times make Hinata go on the defensive. It seemed as though the main reason why they were there was finally showing signs of being a success.

"_Yes. Its working."_ thought Naruto as he continued to spar. _"I'm able to detect where her moves are coming from and find a way to defend myself from them."_ This continued for about another hour of this the two of them decided to call it quits for the day. Currently the two of them were trying to regain their strength before heading back.

"Man, I'm so worn out. But it was well worth it." expressed a tried but contented Naruto. "Thanks again for your help Hinata. I really appreciate your help in doing this."

"You're welcome Naruto." accepted Hinata. "It's the lease I can do for all the times that you've been there for me in the pass. All you need to do is ask if you need anymore help."

"I'll be sure to remember that in the future." Lying completely on the ground Naruto happen to have his arm hit Hinata's bag which resulted in the contents to come out. He quickly helped to gather the stuff back but as he was doing this he couldn't help but become a bit curious. "That's a lot of scrolls that you had in that bag Hinata. Mind telling me what's written on them?"

There was a bit of hesitation in Hinata's part as she didn't know how she would deal with the situation. "It'll be all right to tell him. Naruto isn't someone to degrade a person." "They're scrolls that contain some jutsus. They're a certain type of jutsus to be specific." The silence from Naruto was a signal for Hinata to continue. "Secretly I've been trying to learn how to do water base jutsus. I'm not all that good yet but I believe that I'm getting better. No one knows about this and I wish to keep it that way. So please don't tell anyone this for the time being." Hinata had her tilted head downward and without even realizing she was clutching onto one of the scrolls that had fallen out of her bag as she wasn't sure what Naruto's could be.

"Water jutsus you say?" asked Naruto. "Good for you to Hinata." That cause the Hyuga girl to lift her head back up and look at her friend. "I think it's great that you want to learn something new. I've done the same thing for myself. Undoubtedly the reason why you want no one to know is because your family wouldn't be in favor of it?" All he got was murmur of a yes that was almost not heard.

"Not surprising there. The Hyugas haven't been all that quiet about them thinking that the Jyuuken style along with the Byakugan is the all beat all techniques there is. Glad to see that you don't think that you've decided to improve yourself in what you think is the best way. No doubt everyone will be surprise when you finally decide to reveal it." He couldn't see it but Hinata was given Naruto a grateful expression.

"Thank you again Naruto. I think though that now would be a good time to head back." There wasn't any argument from her young companion and they were about to head out. However, that was put to a sudden halt when someone spoke out.

"What is going on here?" Entering the scene was none other than Naruto's team that comprised of Sakura Haruno, Sasuke Uchiha and their jonin leader, Kakashi Hatake. Coming closer Sakura came to a quick speculation on what must've gone on judging on how dirty and disheveled clothes. "The two of you weren't…" She couldn't get herself to complete her question as it was embarrassing.

Neither of the two understood what the pink haired girl was getting at but when the blush was noticed on her face, Naruto got a good idea what his teammate was trying to ask. "Oh no, you got it wrong." Naruto quickly denied while trying suppressing the blush that was trying to come over his face. "Nothing like that happened. All we were doing was some secret training. There was nothing else." His explanation was supported when an equally embarrassed Hinata who didn't have the ability to speak at the moment

"Oh, training is all. That's good. Wait a minute, training? Tell me that you're joking?" Sakura's surprise was clearly shared by the other two newcomers. "Why in the world you do such a thing?" She would then shift her attention toward Hinata. "And why would you allow him to do it?"

"Because I asked her to, that's why." Naruto intervened in Hinata's behalf. "I asked her to come here to spar. She didn't force me to do it. In fact, it was the other way around. So if you want to be mad at someone then be made at me." That unexpected outburst stopped any further argument from happening. "Anyways, don't you think it would be a good idea for me to learn to function as I am before the Chunin Exams take place?" When he got nothing but silence was all that Naruto needed to know what was being thought.

"Oh, you got to be kidding me. You're not actually going to keep me out are you? So let me guess. You're planning on replacing me with someone before the exams?" More silence was the only confirmation that blind boy required. "And here I thought that I was irritably joking about the possibility with Shikamaru and Choji but it seems as though I was able to foresee this moment."

"It's not like that Naruto." oppose Kakashi. He remained calm as he didn't want to say something that could result in a heated argument to start up. "All it is-"

"Don't give me that 'it's all for my safety' crap." Naruto interrupted before his team leader could finish what he was going to say. "There's shinobi out there who continue without being able to see. In fact, I can name right now one who sees with just one eye. Do you know who I'm talking about, Kakashi?" What Naruto said did have a point there as more times that not Kakashi used one eyes instead of having the one with the Sharingan out. "Technically you're half blind most of the time. So is it really that big of a difference for me?"

"It does when you can't see from _both_ of your eyes." Kakashi explained with a bit of irritation in his voice. "Plus, they'll be people at the chunin exams who'll not show any mercy and wouldn't likely go you three because they may see you as an easy target."

"Why do you think I was sparring with Hinata? She was helping me adjust and rely on my other senses." A nervous little nod from the Hyuga girl confirmed his statement. "After probably a few more sessions I'll have the hang of it."

"Naruto, come with me." Kakashi didn't even give the blond the chance to say anything as he was dragged away from the others. Only after they were out of hearing distance did he finally let go. Not liking the unwanted moving around, Naruto was about to voice his displeasure but was stopped when the jonin spoke up. "Answer me honestly, Naruto. Do you really think that you'll be able to handle yourself at the exams?"

The question caught Naruto off guard and took a moment to answer. "Of course I can. I've already got a good hang of fighting without sight. I'm not as good as I was when I could see but I'm close. By the time they do show up I'll be ready."

"And your confidence about it wouldn't be because of any other…talents?" Seeing the confused look on Naruto's face clearly showed that the boy didn't understand what he meant by that. "For instance, having some kind of hidden bloodline ability?"

To his credit, Naruto understood what Kakashi was suggesting but managed to keep up the confused façade. _"Does he know about the demon?"_ Obvious concern came over the boy for a bit before he was able to calm himself down. _"No. If he did he would've mentioned it sooner. Probably felt some of the fox's chakra seep out during the mission at the Land of Waves. Just play dumb and deny if I have to."_ "You think that I have some kind of bloodline ability? You must be imaging things. If I did then wouldn't the old pervert Jiraiya have told me about it?"

"Not unless he thought that it would be best that you didn't know about it?" Kakashi countered. Clearly the older man wasn't going to give up. "You know that you can tell me whatever you want Naruto."

"Oh, I see. You're going the sincere angle." Unseen but known, Kakashi was confused by what the blond said. "Did you think that Jiraiya, my godfather, wouldn't tell me about the 'conversation' that the two of you had after we returned from the Land of Waves?" Naruto was talking in calm voice but a trace of resentment in his words.

"He didn't tell me everything but did say that you were pretty determined to find out about me." Looking at what he thought was Kakashi's face, Naruto glared at him with the sightless eyes of his. "Let's make something clear…Hayate. You may have been one of the students that my father had before he died but that gives you no right to pry into my private life. Let's get going Hinata."

Not allowing the jonin the opportunity say another word, Naruto headed off with Hinata catching up to him. They only got a few feet when a hand grabbed Naruto's arm and quickly the blond knew that it wasn't Kakashi. "What do you want Sasuke? I'm not in the mood right now."

"Maybe you shouldn't be involved in the exams Naruto. You'll just end up getting hurt." voiced Sasuke that confirmed his suspicion. Of all the things that he thought he would hear, that wasn't something that he expected to hear from the last Uchiha wasn't even on the list.

"Gee, Sasuke. I didn't know that you cared." teased Naruto in slight humor. "Seriously though, who are you trying to kid? You're just as eager to be a part of the exams as I am. What makes you think that I would step aside?"

"Because you'll just be an inconvenience to us if you go." replied Sasuke. "We'll always have to watch and that'll only cause more of a distraction. Also, having to make sure that you don't run into something would just add to it."

"An inconvenience you say?" repeated Naruto calmly. "Tell me something Sasuke. Those eyes of yours are suppose to help to predict a person's movement before they do it right? Then did you see this coming?" Naruto would flip his teammate/rival before using the arm that was holding him and throwing him over his shoulder. "Wasn't expecting that were you?"

Clearly not taking too kindly to what happen to him, Sasuke went for Naruto in fully attending to return the favor. Wanting to and actually doing it were two different things as the blind blond managed to get out of the way and pushed him down. "Maybe you're not as good as you thought you were. Seeing as how this inconvenience was able to make you become face-to-face with the ground." Turning his attention from Sasuke he turned it to his entire team.

"Let's make a proposal. There's a little over a week left until the exams take place. If I'm not wiling to prove that I won't be an inconvenience to you I'll be allowed to remain as a part of the team. Sound reasonable?" Not waiting for a reply Naruto headed off but said something as he left. "If so then tell me later. Right now I've got important things to do. Such as making sure that Hinata gets safely home." Having nothing else to say he returned to his walk back to the village with a somewhat blushing Hinata not that far behind.

**00000000**

As all of this was going on, Sakura Haruno remained silent as she didn't know what to say or do. First was what appeared to be what seemed to be a not so friendly conversation that Naruto and Kakashi in private. Shortly after the blond got involved in a small scuffle with Sasuke which then had him give his proposal before he left. Saying that the pink haired girl was confuse at what had gone would be an understatement.

Shortly after Naruto left with Hinata, Kakashi would also take his leave, which left the two other members of the team alone. When she regained a bit of her composure, Sakura turned his attention to her fallen partner. "Are you all right, Sasuke?"

"I'm fine." That wasn't from the truth since with the exception of a few minor scraps Sasuke was okay. Actually, the thing that was damaged the most was the young Uchiha's ego. "That damn idiot. Wait until I get my hands on him."

"No offense Sasuke but you did kind of deserve what happen." That remark came as a surprise to not only Sasuke but to Sakura herself as she never contradicted her not so secret crush's actions in the past. _"Where did that come from?"_ "I mean, you did somewhat provoke Naruto to do what he did. Seriously, what did you think would happen when you said those things?"

"Maybe that he would realize that bravado of his will just cause him to get more hurt than he already is." There wasn't any real anger in the Uchiha's words and with that sharp mind that she had, Sakura understood the unintended meaning behind his words.

"Oh my, are you actually feeling guilty about what happen to Naruto?" Sakura's assumption caused her to receive a not so pleasant look from Sasuke. "You can't blame yourself for what happen. It just happen and there wasn't anything that I could've been done to change that."

Though she was trying to convince her partner that was the case but he couldn't get himself to believe that was so. To add to the problem that Sasuke had with the whole thing was what led to Naruto becoming blind. _"No one ask that idiot to do what he did. I may of hesitated but that didn't give him the right to step in and get in the way of the attack. What was he trying to prove?"_

"If you had a problem with what happened why don't you just talk about it with Naruto?" Sakura suggested "It'll probably do you good to get it off your chest "

"Why bother?" asked Sasuke. Clearly the boy didn't want to continue with the discussion. That speculation was further proven when he started to walk off. "It wouldn't make any real difference." Knowing that everything that Sasuke had said was just him trying to maintain that impassive attitude of his, Sakura smiled a little before she hurried up to join him.

**00000000**

"Should you be doing this?" voiced Shikamaru about his uncertainty about what his friend had wanted to do. "Maybe you should think twice about going through with this Naruto."

"Not going happen." argued Naruto. More precise, his demon form Fox. In the back of the demon host's mind he had hoped that when he transformed into his demon form it would somehow have his sight return. Unfortunately that didn't work and the only bright side being was that his other senses had become more heightened than when he was in his original form.

"This is the only place that has the last ingredients that Masami needs to complete the medicine." The place was a simple two story building. How the place was discovered was thanks to the connection that Shikamaru's family had with the village's medical facilities. "Simply put, this is something that I need to do Shikamaru. It isn't because I want revenge against Masami for blinding me. I have to find out if I'm still able to do this despite my…handicap." Fox could tell that his lazy friend still had some hesitation with what he wanted to do.

"Listen. I'm not going to be a complete idiot about this. If you see that things are getting out of hand go get the old pervert and the granny to help. But don't do that for any other reason because knowing them they would do everything they could to stop from doing this. You're not going to do the same, would you Shikamaru?"

"Please. Trying to stop you would be too troublesome." In his own way that was Shikamaru saying that he wouldn't get in his friend's way. "Just don't get yourself killed. I wouldn't want to be the one to tell Hinata and Choji why our friend is no longer alive."

Despite himself, Fox smiled. "Don't worry. I don't plan on dieing anytime soon." Nothing else was said between the two as Fox went off in the way that Shikamaru had directed him to go. Took a while but after a moment or two he finally got onto the rooftop of the medical facility. Before going in he bit his thumb and did a series of hand signs. "Summoning Jutsu." Slamming his hand down completed the jutsu as standing before him was the familiar Gamakichi.

"Oh, it's you again." acknowledged the orange toad. "What is it this time? I'm getting tired of you constantly summoning."

"Hello to you too." replied a slightly irritated Fox. "Believe me, if I could I would use another toad but there really isn't anyone I trust. I mean, I can't really depend on Gamatatsu with such a thing. I don't have any sweets on me."

Unable to help himself, Gamakichi chuckled. "That's true." With a hop he sat on top of the demon vessel's shoulder. "Better be thankful that I'm wiling to help you. You better give me a good reward for continually helping you." All that was given as a response was a roll of the eyes from the long haired demon host.

Sneaking quietly into the building wasn't all that difficult and nothing had happen. There was the occasional need to hide to avoid the people working there but nothing to truly worry about. Finding an isolated area Fox and the toad waited to see if the target would show up. In other words, all that could be done was to wait.

For a couple of hours nothing happened and just as it was about to be decided to call it quits, a faint noise was heard. Try as he might Fox couldn't identify what it was but little by littleit was getting closer. "Do you see anything?" whispered Fox.

"Yeah, I do." Gamakichi responded as he peeked from their hiding spot. "It's a woman." That right away got the attention of the amphibian's companion. "Can't get a good look at what she looks like but she seems to have what appears to be a katana strapped to her back."

That was all that Fox needed to hear. Having Gamakichi return to his world and being as quiet as possible he went in the same direction that what he hoped had been Masami. This weird game of follow the leader led to a room that had no other way to get out except for the door that was used to enter.

"_All right, calm down."_ Fox reminded himself. _"Just remember that this is what you've been preparing for."_ Taking a deep breath to calm himself, he focused his senses even more than before. For a while there wasn't anything out of the ordinary that was noticed but he started to hear something that was barely audible. The sound was so quiet that you had to strain your hearing as much as possible to hear it. _"I think she knows that she's not the only one here. I may as well get the pleasantries out of the way."_ "All right, let's put an end to this game of hide-and-seek and get down to business?"

Hearing nothing, Fox thought that maybe he was mistaken and that he was wrong about the whole thing. "My, aren't you a cheeky one." spoke Masami from somewhere in the room. She didn't say anything but it was clear that she wasn't trying to make an escape. "Ah, now I know why you seem familiar. You're that Fox character, aren't you?" No confirmation was made but there wasn't any need of one. "You've become well-known throughout the known world. It's been said that you've became Konoha's self-proclaimed protector. Pry tell, why are you here? What purpose could you have for getting involved?"

"Where should I start?" wondered Fox. Lifting up his hand he stuck a finger out for each point on his list. "You're a hired mercenary. You've stolen medical items. Endangering the lives of people and that includes a genin that you happen to injury while you attacked that caravan."

"What happened to that genin was an accident. I merely wanted to wound him and his partner enough that I wouldn't be followed while I escape." From her tone it sounded like Masami was telling the truth. "That doesn't matter though. I've come here to get something. Leave now and no harm will happen to you."

"So you're here to get the ingredients to finish making that medicine." She didn't say anything but obviously surprise at what he said. "You didn't think that no one would figure out what you were trying to do with the things that you stole, did you? Curious though, who's the person that's paid you to do all of this and why would they need such a medicine?"

"That's none of your concern." Masami shot back that was a bit defensive. "You've got one last chance. Leave now and nothing will happen to you." All she got was silence. "So be it then. You had your chance. There's no one to blame but yourself."

Complete silence came over the room as not a single sound could be heard. That only put Fox on high alert as he couldn't tell where Masami was planning on coming from. _"Calm down. Nothing's good will come from getting nervous."_ Before the demon host had the chance to come up with something a feeling of pain was felt on his back as he fell to his knees. As far as Fox could tell, Masami had used her katana to slash his back.

Reaching back as far as he could he tried to estimate how bad the cut was. Though he couldn't actually see it with how much blood was on his hand when he pulled his hand back it was clear that it was pretty bad. _"Hopefully my quick healing will take care of it before I die from blood lost."_

"_**Let me worry about your wound."**_ stated Kyuubi. _**"Just make sure that you don't get yourself killed here."**_ Clearly the fox spirit was a bit concern about how things were going. He wasn't the only one that felt that way.

Silently agreeing with the demonic tenant living inside of him, Fox concentrated on finding out where Masami was going to try to attack next. No footsteps could be heard but his ears managed to hear something else. From what he could figure it was the sound of something cutting through the wind. Moving to the side he narrowly avoided an attempted slash from the girl's katana and going by instinct delivered a kick that as best as he could guess to be the side of one of her legs.

While still on his hands and knees Fox hid behind what was thought to be a lab table. Taking a couple of deep breaths he tried to calm himself down all the while trying to figure out what to do next. As he did that something unexpected started to happen. Mostly it was just blurs but a bit of Fox's vision had returned. _"What the hell? How is this possible?"_

"_**Don't know."**_ Kyuubi answered truthfully. _**"Fight now, figure out later."**_ Following the advice Fox cautiously looked from the side of the lab table and though his vision was still blurring he could still identify certain things. One of them was Masami who was leaning against a wall as she couldn't put any real support on her right. Seemingly the kick that he hit not that long ago did some damage.

Pulling out a shuriken Fox prepared to set his plan into action. It was a simple plan but should do the trick. Though his vision was still impaired he threw his shuriken and luckily it went in the general direction that he wanted it to go. On instinct, Masami blocked the shuriken with her katana. The sudden move cause her to lose what balance that she had as she started to stumble a slightly.

Taking advantage of the situation, Fox charge at her and tried to subdue his opponent. Getting behind he wrapped his right arm around Masami's neck and started to squeeze. With his left arm he griped his other arm and started to increase the pressure. Despite her struggle to get free she was slowly losing strength. She couldn't even use her katana as she wasn't even able to lift her arms up. Seconds later the lack of oxygen became too much as Masami ultimately became unconscious and her katana fell to the ground.

Releasing his chokehold Fox kept the out cold female thief from falling to the floor. Even though his vision was no better than just blurs he still could get around without bumping into things all the time. "Shikamaru, do you here me?" Fox asked over the radio. Being as careful as possible Fox carried the unconscious Masami out of the room and headed for the way that he came in.

"Yeah, I hear you." answered the Nara boy. "Did everything go all right? Do we have to go with the backup plan?" Again he tried to sound indifferent but his voice had a trace of concern.

"No. Everything went all right. But could you meet me on the roof? There's something I need your help with." Fox couldn't help but smirk at what his friend's reaction will be when he found out about his unexpected development.

**00000000**

"She's starting to wake up." Fluttering open her eyes, Masami saw that she was outside and wasn't alone. On either side of her was the one known as Fox and some guy with brown hair. Right away she tried to grab her katana but couldn't find it anywhere. "Looking for this?" In Fox's hands was Masami's katana and made sure to keep it a safe distance from her grabbing it.

Acting out of pure reflex she tried to get to her feet but a pain from one of her legs stopped her form doing so. "Take easy." said Fox's companion. "You won't be going anywhere for a while with your leg as hurt as it is. Besides, if you were to try anything I'd stop you with my shadow possession jutsu. So it would be smart of you to not anything."

Reluctantly Masami gave in since there wasn't anything that she could do at the moment. "All right, you win. What are you going to do? Hand me over to the ANBU Black Op?"

"Well, that all depends really." established the brown haired associate. "Answer the question and we may not need the involvement of any ANBU members. Now, tell us why you've been doing all of these thefts that you've been doing? Something tells me that your reason was not to fulfill some contract that you had with someone. Care to tell what the reason may be?"

It was evident that Masami didn't want to explain her reasons for what she did but due to the position that she was in she didn't really have much of a choice. "Okay. I'll tell. But we need to go somewhere first. It'll help to explain why I did all of this."

**00000000**

The three of them headed quietly to a one story house that had clearly been abandoned for quite sometime. There wasn't any need to worry about someone spotting them as no one was lively there. As the three of them entered the house both Fox and Shikamaru were on guard as it was a possibility that the whole thing could've been a trap.

"I hope that you're not trying to lead us into a trap." voiced Fox to what he was thinking. As time went on his vision had been coming back but it was nowhere near good enough that it wouldn't hinder him if a fight broke out. "We don't want to fight but we will if we have to."

"Don't worry. This isn't a trap." reassured Masami. After accepting defeat she hadn't try to escape once. Even when she led them to where she wanted to go she never took the chance to get away. "It would be pointless really. I'm doubtful that I'll be able to get you two if it was a trap. So you can relax a bit." They continued to walk until they entered a room that didn't really have anything with the exception of a table with a few chair and a mattress that had someone lying on top of it.

"Masami, is that you?" asked the person. By the voice it was presumed to be a young boy. Getting up to a sitting position it was discovered that the boy had short reddish-brown hair and brown eyes. When he caught sight of Fox and Shikamaru he became concern. "Who are they? Why are they here?" Before he could say anything more he started coughing heavily.

"Daisuke." Rushing over, Masami checked on the boy. Stroking his back and handing him a cup of water that he drank helped the coughing to stop. "Take it easy. Don't strain yourself." Catching his breath, the boy, identified as Daisuke, nodded his head in understanding before lying back on the mattress. Turning her attention away from him, Masami looked to her two captors who hadn't made a move to stop her. "This is my brother, Daisuke Tsukiko. He's my reason for what I've been doing."

"He's sick isn't he?" asked Shikamaru, being the first to stay anything. "The medicine that you were going to be made with the things that you were stealing, it was for him?" It wasn't really a question but more of a confirmation.

"Yeah it is. The sickness has affected for nearly a month. I've would've taken him to a hospital a while ago if it wasn't for the fact that I would be quickly captured by the authorities and would separate us." Instinctively she stroked her brother's head as he had fallen asleep. "He's the only family I have left and I'd doing anything for him." Removing her hand from Daisuke's head she somberly looked over to Fox and Shikamaru. "So, what are you going to do? Going to hand me over to the authorities?"

Shikamaru didn't say anything as it wasn't really his place to make any type of decision. Instead he looked over to his fiery orange haired companion, signaling that whatever they were going to do was up to him. "Actually, I think I know of a way works for all of us." All that was given as a response was perplex looks from those there.

**00000000**

"I can't believe that you got me do this."

"Quit complaining. This is the right thing to do and you know it. So just get on with it granny." Ignoring unwelcome nickname, Tsunade got at the reason why they were there.

Reaching into one of her pockets she pulled out a small bag which she handed to Masami Tsukiko. At the moment, beyond the gates the gates of Konoha was famed medical specialist Tsunade, who had been somewhat persuaded by Fox who was standing beside her. The reason for being there was to give the bag to Masami who had her sick brother, Daisuke.

"Have him take the medicine once a day and he should be better within a few weeks. But make sure to not let him overdose it until he's entirely cured."

"No worry, I will." assured Masami. She carefully made sure to put the bag with the medicine in a safe place. "I appreciate this. I don't know how I can ever thank you."

"Just live up to your side of the bargain." said Fox. "You and your brother leave Konoha and promise to never steal anything from here again and that'll be good enough. That was the deal that we agreed to."

"I understand and I accept to the terms." Picking up her stuff as well as the things that belonged to her brother she prepared to head out. "Again, thank you for helping me and my brother. If I'm able to return the favor just ask."

The two siblings were ready to leave but before going Daisuke walked over until he was standing in front of the two of them. "Thank you, mister. Thank you too, older lady." That last comment got to Fox as he struggled to keep in his laughing. Tsunade was also trying her best to keep from popping the kid in the head. Shortly after Masami and Daisuke left, to whatever life that awaited for them.

"You think that they'll be all right?" asked Fox. "She was after all a criminal and there are a lot of people that would like to capture her. Probably be hard for her to get away while watching after her brother."

"I think she'll be fine." Tsunade voiced. "I don't think that she won't be doing anything for a while. Also, Konoha will most likely not pursue her. Seemingly all the things that all of the ingredients that she reportedly had stolen had mysteriously found in the hospital's main research lab." From the corner of her eye she gave Fox a curious look. "You wouldn't happen to know how that happened, would you."

"No, I'm afraid I don't." the long haired demon host too innocently stated. With a deep breath, Fox changed Fox and back to Naruto Uzumaki. "Just one more thing to be thankful I guess." Another thing was obviously Naruto regaining his vision which was now close to being complete back to normal.

"I'm been curious on how you were able to get back your vision. I thought that it was impossible." It was a legitimate question. Since Naruto's sight had started to return he had Jiraiya, Shuizune and Shikamaru had asked several times on how it could've happen. "I thought that even with the nine-tailed fox's regenerative ability it wasn't possible for you to fully heal."

"Your guess is as good as mine." Naruto answered honestly. "Truthfully, I thought the same. Apparently the Kyuubi had been working constantly in repairing my injury but said nothing about it. He didn't say anything so it wouldn't get my hopes up if it didn't work. Seemingly he was looking out for me." Deep in the subconscious part of his mind Naruto could faintly hear Kyuubi growl in anger. "Whatever the case may be I don't care. I can see again and I'll be able to continue to help protect Konoha with this power that I was burden with."

Tsunade couldn't help but smile. _"He's so much like them that's its amazing. Nawaki, Dan, it seems as though your wishes are living on within this boy."_ Remembering her lost love ones pained Tsunade but it didn't hurt as it usually did. "I guess it shouldn't be that much of a surprise. It's what we humans do. Perhaps it's time for us to get back to the village. Wouldn't you agree?"

"I think so." With a smile of his own, Naruto joined her on their return to the village. Though neither said a word they both knew that the problems that were between them had went away and was replaced by understanding and approval or the other.

**00000000**

Next Day…

"Naruto, what are you doing here?" Just after leaving Ickiraku Ramen, Naruto heard the voice of someone familiar. Turning his head to where the voice had came from it was realized that the voice had came from Sakura and to somewhat of a surprise Sasuke. The reason why the pink haired girl was shocked to see her spiky haired friend was because he was standing there in the open without any guide. "Don't you think that it's not wise to go without someone helping you get around?"

At first Naruto was confused by what Sakura meant then quickly understood what was going on. When he headed out Naruto had grabbed on reflex the sunglasses that was used when he was temporarily blind and was about halfway to Ickiraku's before he even realized that he had them on.

That added to the fact that he had let to tell anyone from his team about his full recovery had him inwardly smiling. _"They think I'm still blind. This could be interesting."_ "Oh, come on. I've been coming to this place so many times that I know how to get here by heart. Just curious but is there someone else here with you?" Naruto made sure not to laugh since it was a good chance for Sakura to figure that something was going on.

"Uh, yeah there is. It's Sasuke." Sakura couldn't help but blush slightly at how that sounded. "It doesn't mean that we're on a date." _"Though, I wouldn't mind if it was."_ she mentally said to herself. Looking to her side she nudged Sasuke and motioned for him to say something. "Speaking of Sasuke, he has something to you."

"_I'll get you back for this."_ Sasuke thought to himself. Knowing what Sakura was trying to get him to do, he decided to get it done with sooner than later. "I just wanted to say that…" He tried to say the words but all that came from the Uchiha's was him opening and closing his mouth with no words coming out. "That …"

"That he's thankful for you saving him during the mission and that he's sorry that you got hurt in the process." Sakura intervened and said what Sasuke had trouble saying. He tried to not show it but Sasuke was grateful for her meddling.

"You don't say. Sasuke actually thinks that?" Naruto had to smile as he could tell from behind his sunglasses that the boy in question was trying to suppress the embarrassment that was coming over his face. "Well then, you're welcome. Just don't make it a habit. I can't always be there to save your ass." That helped to get rid of the embarrassment as it was replaced by irritation that Sasuke had felt from the boy's comments. All that Naruto did was just smirk.

While all of that was going on, Sakura couldn't help but laugh as she found it amusing. She wouldn't notice that one of the people that were walking pass would accidentally bump into her. Caught by surprise caused her to lose her balance and she would've fallen if it wasn't for Naruto reaching over and catch her.

What happened had come as a surprise but it didn't stop Sakura from noticing something when she looked up at Naruto's face. It seemed as though when the he went to grab her, his sunglasses had fallen and allowed Sakura to see his eyes clearly. "Your eyes. Naruto, they're…you can see again."

Having been caught, Naruto just smiled and rubbed the back of his head. "Yeah, you're right. Granny Tsunade was able to heal the damage yesterday and I'm able to see." Unfortunately for him, he failed to notice the angry expression that was coming over Sakura's face. "I guess we don't have to worry about what to do about the Chunin Exams." It would be around that time that Naruto would finally notice the look that his female teammate was giving. "I was going to tell you guys, honestly. I just didn't have the time to do so."

Naruto knew that he was screwed as he even had to admit that was a lame excuse. Only thing that he could do was slowly back away as Sakura was making her way towards him and was clearly not happy. "Uh, look the time. I have to go. Bye." Moving as fast as his feet would allow him, Naruto ran off with an angry chasing after him. All the while Sasuke found the situation amusing as he let out a chuckle before leaving in the opposite direction.

* * *

I bet none of expected that to happen in this chapter, did you? Don't forget that it was mentioned in the previous chapter that no one was sure that Kyuubi would be able to heal, they had to wait and see but it was assumed that it was permanent. I'll also admit that for awhile I thought about making Masami nothing more than a mercenary but add a twist by giving her a reason for why she was doing what she did. Remember, sometimes people have to do bad things for the right reasons. Doesn't make it right but it could help to understand why they were doing it.

You may of also notice that Hinata is trying to learn jutsus that involved water. That plays a part in the story and I also wanted to set up that some of the characters will learn elemental jutsus earlier than when it was introduced in part II of the actually series. Of course that doesn't mean that I'll have Naruto learn the Rasenshuriken anytime soon but it may change things.

That's pretty much it. I hope to have the next chapter out later this month. Speaking of which, the next chapter will be the last original chapter before I focus on the Chunin Exam. When that particular arc happens they'll be things that are similar to what happen in the series but I'll add my own twist to it. You'll just have wait and see what those twist may be. Until then, go ahead and leave a review. It would be appreciative.


	24. Relaxation

Well, here you go, another chapter. This is the last one before I go with the whole Chunin Exam arc. It's not really a serious chapter as it's more of a layback chapter. Doesn't mean that it's a chapter that should skip over. Check it out and see for yourself. As for the disclaimer, I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Chapter 24:  
Relaxation

"Here you go guys. This is the place." The place that was being referred to was a lush forest area. It looked peaceful as there was a waterfall that flowed into a large lake. "I couldn't think of a better place to have a vacation. Wouldn't you say so?"

"Yeah, it's nice." agreed Naruto, who was one of the people there. "But why did you suddenly decide to put together this little group gathering, Sakura?"

"Well, why not? I just figured that it would be a good way for all of us to get to know each other better." Sakura explained to her company. "Is that so wrong?" While her explanation sounded reasonable, there were those who thought differently.

"Or maybe you thought that if you invited everyone than Sasuke would more likely come as well." suspected one of the other people that came. That person was the bleach blonde, Ino Yamanaka. The sheepish look on the pink haired girl's face was all that was needed to confirm the hidden objective to the whole thing. "Sorry to say forehead girl but your plan didn't go the way that you hoped."

What was meant by that was that everyone agreed to Sakura's suggestion. However, there were a few exceptions. The main one being Sasuke, who believed that he had better things to do than play around. Neji said a similar thing but said it in a more obnoxious way. Lastly was Shino and his reason being that he wasn't really one for group gatherings. Not allowing those setbacks to deter them, the other eleven decided to still go ahead with the plan and that led to where they were.

"Don't get me started, Ino." Sakura warned. She didn't want to start arguing with her friend/rival. "We have a week before the Chunin Exam starts and when it does our teams will have to go against one another. So before that happens let's enjoy as much relation as possible. Does everyone agree?" There wasn't argument from any of them as in some way they felt the same. "So let's go ahead and have some fun."

**00000000**

All seemed calm as nothing appeared to be out of place. Suddenly, four fishes leapt out of the water and were up in the air. Before they could fall back into the water they were each struck by a kunai. The blows were strong enough that they became stuck in a tree that was near the side of the lake.

Moments later someone came out form underneath the water, gasping for air. "Did you get them?" All he got was the person in question pointing over to the tree that the fish were stuck to. "A dumb question I guess. After all, you never miss your target, TenTen."

That seemed to only bring a somewhat cocky smirk to the face of the brown haired girl. "Of course I don't. I never miss unless I don't have real intention of hitting them." boasted TenTen somewhat, which in a way she had a right to. "Are you up for another go, Naruto?"

"Sure. We need to get more if we want enough to feed everybody." Getting out of the water, Naruto who was wearing orange swim trunks with black trim climbed to the top of the tallest tree that was beside the lake. He was about to jump when an idea suddenly came to him. "Get ready TenTen. I thought of a way to speed things up."

Jumping off the tree, Naruto did a hand sign that was somewhat of a trademark of his. The result being five identical versions of the original appeared at either side of him. With the added amount of body mass it resulted in a much larger splash when they landed. Unprepared for such a move, TenTen could do nothing as the wave of water crashed on top of her.

When the six Narutos broke the water's surface they instantly saw a now soaked weapon mistress glaring hotly at them. "Sorry about that. I guess I should've given you more of a warning before I did that." That didn't help to lessen the look that was being sent his way. "Come on. You can't be that upset. It was only a bit of water."

Apparently TenTen thought differently as that angry look was still on her face. What happen next was that the bun haired girl had several kunai in both of her hands. Almost immediately the five Naruto shadow clones disappeared, leaving the original behind. Understanding what was most likely to come one thing came to Naruto. "Oh crap."

**00000000**

"Did you guys hear that?" questioned Kiba.

"Hear what?" wondered Choji. Currently the two, along with Shikamaru were on top of a small hill. They weren't doing anything, just relaxing.

"I don't know. It sounded almost like a scream. Wouldn't you agree Akamaru?" The little white dog barked in what may have been support for his owner/partner.

"Just ignore it." suggested Shikamaru. He hadn't gotten up from his position as he remained laying back on the ground and staring up at the sky. "You could've just been hearing things. Forget about it and enjoy some cloud watching." Not bothering to argue, both Kiba and Akamaru decided to go ahead and join Shikamaru and Choji in enjoying the view.

**00000000**

"Come on, TenTen. This isn't funny." What Naruto was referring to was that after the little water incident, TenTen decided to retaliate. Unfortunately, her way involved her pinning Naruto to a tree with her weapons and making him unable to move at all.

"Oh, I don't know." replied TenTen. The amusement was clearly heard in her voice. "I find it funny." Unable to hold it in any longer she started laughing. "Maybe this'll teach you to not do such a stunt again."

"I think you made your point TenTen." said Lee who arrived shortly after his teammate's retaliation to the blond. "Perhaps you should let him down now." Taking that suggestion into consideration both TenTen and Lee helped Naruto get free. Once free, the bond gave the girl a weak glare which was ignored.

"Glad to see that you're not someone who's not quick tempered TenTen." Naruto's comment would earn a not so pleasant look from the girl. Knowing what that may lead to he quickly apologized. Looking about, Naruto notice that something and an idea came to him. "I'm curious, Lee. You run pretty fast without your training weights on right?" He got a nod of confirmation from the boy. That only helped to have the smile on Naruto's face to become even bigger. "Then maybe there's something you can do to help me."

**00000000**

"Ah, this feels good." exclaimed a pleased Sakura. "This was a good idea that I came up with."

"For once I'll agree with you." supported Ino. The two girls were sitting at lake side in their swimsuits trying to get some sun. "I couldn't come up with any other things to do besides this. You sure you don't want to join us, Hinata?"

A little further up shore was Hinata. She was sitting on a towel, reading some kind of scroll. "I'm sure." she answered without looking from what she was doing. "I'm not really up for tanning. I rather learn what's in scroll before the exam starts." Another reason was that she didn't feel all that comfortable in wearing her one piece swimsuit in front of everyone.

"Don't worry about that." suggested Ino. "The exams aren't happening for a week and we're going to do find. Even if we don't pass we'll just try again later."

"Speak for yourself." Sakura retorted with no real anger. "My team's going to pass the exam and become chunin. After all, I'm teamed with Sasuke and Naruto. Doubtful that there's anyone can beat those two when they work together."

"My, aren't we the confident one." Seeing an opportunity to teaser her friend/rival, the bleach blonde girl decided to go even further. "And did I hear right? Did you say Sasuke _and_ Naruto? When did the blond haired knucklehead get such praise? Don't happen to have feelings for your other teammate now, do you?"

Unknown by either girl but Hinata's hands slightly twitched before tightening her grip on the scroll. That feeling continued to slowly grow until she noticed something away from where she was. She went over to where she saw the thing. All the while the two girls didn't notice her leaving."

"Me and Naruto? Are you crazy?" From how Sakura said that she was truly shock by what she heard. "I don't think so. We're friends, I'll admit that. But anything more than that is unlikely. Besides, I think Hinata has a thing for him. Isn't that right, Hinata?" Looking back she didn't see the girl in question. "Hey, where did she go?"

"I don't know. But what's that?" Turning her attention to where Ino was pointing to and saw that on the lake surface was Naruto but that wasn't what the strange thing. The blond was holding onto a rope while the other end was tied around the waist of Rock Lee. What was happening was that Lee was running quickly on the water. All the while, Naruto was being pulled by the rope. "You got to be kidding me. I must be seeing things."

"Afraid not." acknowledged Sakura who couldn't believe what she was seeing as well. "No doubt this was all Naruto's idea. What could possible make him come up with such an idea?"

The two girls continued to watch the scene for awhile. Nothing really happen until the two boys started to head towards them. It seemed as though they were going to head back to shore but that wasn't the case. Just before reaching shore, Lee did a sharp turn away. The result being that a huge spray of water hit both Sakura and Ino.

By the edge of the nearby forest was two individuals. One of them being Hinata and the other was the person who saw earlier. "Are you now glad that I called you over Hinata? You would've been soaked like them if I didn't."

"Yes I am." Hinata thanked. Though she didn't want to admit it but what she found what she just saw amusing as a small smile came over her face. "Thanks for being considerate, Naruto."

"I told you, I'm not Naruto. I'm just one of his shadow clones." reestablished the Naruto look-alike. "But in a few moments he'll be wishing that things were the other way around." What was meant by those words was that by the lake the original Naruto was about to get a physical response to what he did from Sakura and Ino. "The poor bastard." muttered the clone as his creator was on the verge of getting a beating.

**00000000**

"It serves you right man." Kiba remarked. You could practically feel the smirk that he had on his face as he clearly found humor at what had gone on. "Did you actually think that they would've get even for that stunt you pulled? I thought what happen with TenTen would've taught you better."

What Kiba was talking about was that after the little water stunt that Naruto did with Lee's help, he received a beating from the two irritated girls. Lee had luckily avoided a similar treatment since he was merely doing what he was asked to do. However, he didn't get a slight scolding from Sakura and perhaps that was more of a punishment than any beating then he could've gotten. Being reminded of it and being constantly joked on about it was beginning to get on the spiky haired boy's nerves.

"Oh, shut up Kiba." shot back Naruto in annoyance. "Why don't you go mark your territory on a tree or something like that?" A war of insults would've certainly have continued if something didn't go ahead and intervened.

"Okay. That's enough you two." voiced Shikamaru. Gratefully the two of them stopped with their constant bickering. "It's late and we still have some cleaning to do." Reluctantly the boys started cleaning up the campsite.

Nightfall had arrived and somehow the girls had something to do with the unfunny moments which immediately knew what it was meant by that not so subtle reason. Not all of the girls agreed with the decision as Hinata wanted to help but was taken away before she had a chance to.

"Why are we doing this?" wondered Kiba. "We didn't make all of this mess. So why are we doing all the cleaning?"

"Because it is our duty to help the women when we are able to do so." exclaimed Lee. While he though that was a just reason, the others though otherwise.

"Or maybe because if we didn't we would likely have received a beating from the girls." That sounded like a more reasonable reason as the other guys nodded their heads in agreement. "To argue about it would just be troublesome anyway."

"Shikamaru's right." Naruto added. "Besides, why argue, when we can get even?" A sly smile would then come over the blond's face.

**00000000**

"Do you think that it was all right to do that to the guys?" Hinata asked again. Currently she and the other girls were in their large tent and were ready to get some sleep. "It just doesn't seem fair."

"It is fair Hinata." disputed Ino. "Sometimes you got to lay the law down when it comes to men. If you don't then they won't do as you say."

"And here I thought that it was a way to get back at Naruto for what he did today." commented TenTen who shook her head at her friend's logic. She had hit the nail on the head as a guilty look came over Ino's face.

"Maybe there was an ulterior motive for what we did but it needed to be done." Sakura voiced seemingly defend Ino's reason. "We had to punish Naruto for the stunts he pulled and make sure that the others don't do the same. Now it's late so let's get some sleep."

There was no arguing from the others as they all went to sleep. Soon all of them were in dreamland and showing no signs of getting up anytime soon. As they sleep something brushed up against Sakura. She ignored it at first but it kept happening. "Quit it Ino. I'm trying to sleep."

"What are you talking about?" Ino sleepily asked. ""I haven't done anything." Though it wasn't meant, the talking started to make Hinata and TenTen slowly wake up too.

Becoming curious, Sakura looked to where she had been poked and when she saw what it was it got rid of any sleep that she still had. "Hello. Do you have any sweets?" asked a yellow skinned toad, wearing a blue vest. The toad was Gamatsu but that didn't matter as Sakura's phobia for the creature kicked in as she let out a loud scream. That of course woke up the others up and when they saw what the commotion was, they joined her.

**00000000**

"Apparently they've met your little friend." said Choji. Much like what the girls had been doing earlier, the guys decided to call it a night but not before doing one more thing. Hearing Naruto's idea the boys agreed to go through with it. Originally Lee wasn't really up for it but after some prodding he finally gave in.

The idea was a simple one really. Using the summoning jutsu Naruto summoned a toad showed up. Despite not having complete mastery of it yet he still managed to summon one of the toads that he was on good terms with. It only took the promise of getting some sweets later that Gamatsu did what he was asked. Naruto had remembered Sakura's fear of toads and used that to his advantage. He had no idea how the three other girls would react but got his answer by the sounds that were heard.

"You know that you're going to get it for this right?" warned Kiba. He found the whole situation amusing but had to worry about what was going to happen after.

"Yeah, I know." admitted Naruto. The blond was lying down on the ground as though he didn't have a care in the world. But you know what? It was well worth it."

**00000000**

Next Day…

A new day had started but in a way it was just continuing from the previous one. Like predicted, the girls were angry by what he did. Hinata was little easier on him but not by much. Things were finally put to rest when Naruto gave his word to not do another prank for the rest of the trip. That was good enough for them because when the blond gave you his word he wouldn't break it unless he had to.

Unfortunately, that didn't mean that there wasn't any kind of retaliation from what happen the previous night. It wasn't until the following night that it happened. The surprise though wasn't what it was but who had done it. At the moment Naruto was kneeling over by the lake, putting handfuls of water into his mouth.

"I can't believe that you did such a thing." said Naruto in between mouthfuls of water. He was talking to the person who was responsible for his current predicament. "Did you really have to that?"

"…Maybe not." replied the person. "But you did have it coming. Would you rather have Sakura or Ino come of with a way to get you back at you?"

"But did you have to mess with my ramen? Seriously, secretly putting hot sauce in my ramen while I wasn't looking?" Luckily it was around that time that Naruto's mouth started to cool off. "That was really mean of you Hinata."

Yes. The one who did the prank was Naruto's good friend, Hinata Hyuga. When the girl saw the look on the boy's face she couldn't help but be amuse. It was almost seemed like he was pouting. Unable to hold it in, Hinata started to laugh at what had happen.

Seeing her laugh caused Naruto to laugh as well as he also found the humor of the situation. "Honestly, I got to say that you're definitely full of surprises Hinata." Suddenly images of what appeared to be Hinata straddled on top of him wearing a thin t-shirt and a flush look on her face. As soon as those images appeared they went away, leaving a confuse Naruto behind.

"_What was that all about? Why did that suddenly popped in my head and why did I picture Hinata like that?"_ To try to rid of such visuals the demon host shook his head a bit but the image of the paled eyed girl remained. Looking to his side Naruto couldn't help be amazed by the moonlight coming over Hinata. The blond was not even aware of the blush that came over his face.

Before anything else could be done, Naruto sense something. Whatever it was it some way drawn to it and it felt familiar. It was then that he remembered where he felt such a thing before. _"It's him. This might not be a good thing. Maybe I should check it out."_ Not wanting to be followed he had to come up with an excuse.

"Uh, do you mind heading back Hinata? I kind of have to take care of something. If you know what I mean." A lame excuse granted but it was the only one that could be though of at the moment. Gratefully it was enough to convince Hinata as she just nodded her head in understanding before heading back to the campsite.

When she was gone, Naruto took off toward where he had sense that peculiar chakra. Along the way he transformed into Fox. Soon he arrived at his desired location as it was only a few miles from where he and the others had set camp. A possible confidence but who knows. Right now he focused on the person that he found.

Sitting on top of a large rock was Gaara from Suna. From what could be seen all the redhead was doing was staring up toward the moon and wasn't moving a muscle. _"So, it was him. Now what should I do?" _Fox wouldn't have the time to think about that as he felt something brushing his leg. Looking down he spotted a trail of sand that was trying to wrap itself around him. Knowing what that would lead to he jumped away and came out into the open. "I guess I should've guessed that you'd do that. After all, you're not someone who likes to resolve things with words."

It was then that Gaara turned his sight on the blond. Before anything could happen, they were joined by the two other Suna shinobi and when they saw the new arrival they had opposite reactions. Kankuro was upset to see the person who mocked him repeatedly. Temari on the other hand was seemingly glad to see the new guest.

""What the hell are you doing here?" asked Kankuro. He clearly was not happy to have Fox around there. "Came here to bother us again?"

"Well hello to you too." muttered Fox. "Actually, I'm here to do the same thing that you're here for. To rest up before the Chunin Exam starts. It just so happen to be a coincidence that we were so close to each other's sites."

"Are you planning to stay in that form or are you going to show your real self?" questioned Gaara. His sudden question surprised his older sister and brother as they had no idea what their younger sibling was talking about.

"I guess I shouldn't be that surprise that you say through my disguise." remarked Fox who chuckled. Right before their eyes the long, fiery orange haired Fox became a short, spiky blond Naruto Uzumaki. "After all, who better to identify a demon host then another demon host?" The shock was clearly seen on Kankuro and Temari's face while Gaara maintained the same impassive expression.

"What, you didn't think that I wouldn't figure it out? Now if you excuse me, I'll be leaving." As Naruto tried to leave, waves of sand started to surround him. "Have some patience. Wait until the exam. No need to rush things."

In somewhat of a surprise, Gaara allowed the sand to fall harmlessly to the ground. "I'll kill you." declared Gaara in what sounded more than a promise but a guarantee. "To prove my existence I'll drench the ground with your blood. As well as anyone else who stands in my way."

"You make it sound as though if we fought it would be a death match." Clearly that was what the fellow demon host meant. "Let's make something clear. If we fight then so be it. But if you try to hurt my friends or use them to get to me I'll make you regret it." To drive the warning home, Naruto's eyes turned blood red.

"How do you know that we won't reveal your secret?" There was no hostility in Temari's question but a touch of fear in her voice. Apparently her experience with demon hosts wasn't a good one.

"Good question. I'm not really sure." answered Naruto honestly. "Maybe it's because you're not the kind of people who'll go around and reveal such information. Besides, you keep my secret I'll keep yours." Having nothing more to say, the blond was about to leave but stop for a moment. "Oh yeah, one more thing before I go. Uh, Kankuro wasn't it? You miss a spot with your make up." With a laugh, Naruto took off.

"Yeah, you better run." yelled an upset Kankuro. After about a minute he calmed down and became mildly serious. "So there's another one of them out there isn't there?"

"Seems like it." voiced Temari. "Though, he seems to be different. Almost like he was like a normal person. However…" Glancing over to her younger brother she could see that Gaara had a sadistic look on his face. _"It may not matter in the end."_

**00000000**

"Where have you been Naruto? Had trouble going to the bathroom?"

"Ha, ha. That was hilarious Kiba." said Naruto. "I just got distracted by…something. By the way Shikamaru, can I have a word with you? There's something that I need to tell you." It didn't take long for the two boys to be by themselves.

"So, what did you want to talk about?" asked the Nara boy. "Something tells me that it's important."

Yeah it is but I'll make it short. Stay clear of Gaara from Suna." From Naruto's tone he was being absolutely serious. "If you come across him get away, as fast as you can. Make sure to tell Choji and Ino the same before the Chunin Exam starts. I'll do the same for the others."

Going back to the campsite he sat down and tried to relax. "Is something wrong Naruto?" wondered Hinata. "You seem to be troubled."

"I'm fine, Hinata." reassured Naruto despite the encounter that he had moments ago. "Everything's fine." "At least I hope they will be."

* * *

Was the chapter worth it? Like I mentioned in the top author notes this was a chapter was more of a layback one with only few moments of seriousness. Hopefully the little moments I did were funny or at least amusing.

I've mentioned it already but I'll say it again. Starting with the next the Chunin Exam begins. It'll somewhat follow how the series went but I'll of course add my own twist it. What those twists are you'll just have to wait and see. There'll also be chapters that'll be completely original.

That's it and until next time, which will be out late this month or early next month, see ya and leave a review.


	25. Snake

At long last I finally have this story go into the whole Chunin Exam Arc. They'll be similarities from what happen from the actually Chunin Exam but I'll have my own stuff here and there. Now, as for the disclaimer, I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Chapter 25:  
Snake

Today was the day. It was the day that many people had been preparing themselves for quite some time. Today was the day of the start of the Chunin Exam and all those there were ready as they were ever going to be. There was no exception and that included the team that Naruto was on.

"There's sure a lot of people here." stated Sakura in a low tone to her voice. What she said was true as throughout the room were shinobi from various villages and ages in the hopes of being promoted. None of which were trying to hide the fact that they weren't happy to see the younger people that was there as well.

"Ah, don't worry Sakura." Naruto attempted to comfort. Obviously the girl was becoming nervous about the whole thing and the heated stares weren't doing any favors. "We'll do fine, so relax." That seemed to ease Sakura's concern, if only by a little.

"Big words for someone who most likely get easily beaten." taunted the third member of the team, Sasuke. Unlike with Sakura, he was being all confident and had no problem of letting it be known.

Instead of glaring or yelling back as expected, Naruto gave a sly smile in return. "That's funny you say that. Seeing as how it was only a few moments ago that you got your ass handed to you." What he meant by that was just before coming to the room they were confronted by Lee who wanted to have a little match with Sasuke. Thinking that it would be a nice warm up the Uchiha agreed to the request.

While Lee lacked in ninjutsu and genjutsu department, the same didn't go for taijutsu which Sasuke apparently didn't take into account. To make a long story short, Lee beat Sasuke around like a pinball. It came to an end when Maito Gai appeared and put a stop to it before they could get disqualified from the exam.

Before leaving, Lee made the comment that Sasuke wasn't as good as he claimed to be. He went so far as to say that there were two people that were stronger than he was and that they were on both of their teams. Since the Uchiha was in a foul mood as what was said kept going through his head.

"_He was lying."_ thought Sasuke. _"What was said was just something to mess with my head. Like either of them could be stronger than me."_ Before his train of thought could continue he was ambushed by a familiar bleach blonde girl who wrapped their arms around his neck.

"There you are Sasuke. I finally found you." exclaimed a happy Ino. "I knew that there wasn't anything that would keep you from being here." As for Sasuke's reaction to all of that, he had a not so pleasant look on his face.

He wasn't the only one that wasn't happy about what was going on as Sakura was becoming very agitated by the second. "Get your hands off of Sasuke, Ino pig." Soon the two got into one of their usual arguments.

"_At least it got her to forget about her nervousness."_ The squabble would be forgotten as he spotted Shikamaru and Choji as well as Hinata's team coming over. Gratefully this impromptu reunion halted Ino and Sakura's fight which was a great relief to Sasuke.

"Well, look at this. The three rookie teams are here together." acknowledged Kiba. "Wonder how many of us will make it to the end? Naturally I will."

"Carefully with your words Kiba." warned Sasuke. "You wouldn't want to have to eat them later."

"You mean like you had to after you fought Lee?" voiced Naruto. For what he said he received two reactions. One was a glare from Sasuke and getting strangled by Sakura. That went on until someone called out to them.

"Don't you think that you children should take it down a bit?" The one that spoke up was a slightly older boy with glasses. "You wouldn't want to put more attention on you than you already have." What he meant was that everyone else that was in the room had their attention squarely on them. That immediately put most of the rookies on edge.

However, there was one of them that weren't even taking notice of it as he was focus on something else. That rookie was Naruto and what he was focusing on was the boy that spoke up. The reason being is because he knew who the person was. _"What the hell is he doing here? This can't be a coincidence."_

"And who are you to tell us what to do?" questioned Ino. Apparently while Naruto was having his internal questioning the mood of the room returned to normal. "I mean, we don't even know your name."

"The name's Kabuto Yakushi and like you I'm a genin from Konoha hopping to becoming a chunin." established the now identified Kabuto. He was acting all friendly that sicken Naruto as he knew how he really was. "This is obviously your first time participating in this exam so you don't have a clue on how things go. Everyone's nerves are already strained and how you're acting isn't helping matters. Reminds me how I once was."

"You said that your name was Kabuto right?" asked Sakura. "By the way you talk it sounds like you've taken this exam before. Is this your second time taking it?"

Becoming somewhat embarrass, Kabuto placed behind his head. "Actually, this is my seventh time taking this exam. I've taken them twice for the past two years."

"Wow, so you should know a lot about what's going on." concluded Sakura. The rest of the rookies saw it as a way to get some possible information but Naruto saw otherwise.

"Yeah, that really is something." he voiced not so quietly. "That means he's failed six times. Certainly not as impressive as his brother was." That got the attention of all people in the group, including Kabuto. "His name was Yori I believe. On his first try became a chunin. I guess history doesn't repeat itself." His words were harsh and he knew it but he had a reason. _"With what I've seen him do there's no way that Kabuto couldn't pass the exam. There has to be a reason for him to do such a thing."_

Naruto had hoped that Kabuto would become angry and blow his cover. Unfortunately, that didn't happen as he maintained that innocent persona of his. "Perhaps you're right. Hopefully this time will be different. But all of these previous attempts weren't a complete lost." Reaching into his pocket he pulled out a thick stack of what look like cards. "These are info cards that have everything that I learned. I also have information on all those who are participating here, including all of you. Is there anyone that you wish to know about?"

"Rock Lee form Konoha." Sasuke almost demanded. Not a shocker there as he wanted to learn about the person who beat him.

"Also Gaara from Suna." added Shikamaru. Now there was a surprise to all of them except for the Nara and Uzumaki boys. The only reason that Naruto could figure for his friend to ask was because he wanted to confirm the warning that the blond gave him

"You already know their names so there's no challenge really." Pulling out two cards Kabuto revealed that was on the cards. Naruto didn't pay that much attention to what was said about Lee since he sparred with on occasion. The same couldn't be said when the focus turned to Gaara. Nothing was revealed but when it was said that everyone mission that he did, including a B-rank one without receiving a single scratch. Whether that was because of his demon was unknown. "Remember, all the shinobi from Konoha, Suna, Kiri, Ame, Waterfall and the new yet minor village, Oto have sent only their best here. All of which are willing to do whatever it takes to succeed."

What Kabuto said only helped to further drive the point about how serious the exams were. Add to the fact that the glares that were constantly being sent their way made the three Konoha rookie teams to become a bit nervous. Even the usual positive thinking Naruto was seemingly showing signs of the pressure finally getting to him. That would be soon proven wrong.

"The name's Naruto Uzumaki. If any of you have a problem, form a line. I'll take you all on." The boy's sudden outburst caused a multiple of reactions. It made most of the people to shift their focus onto him and made his friends a bit more at ease. "Ah, that felt good to say."

"My, how optimistic of you." said an amused Kabuto. "It'll be interesting to see if you can follow those words up. But is there anyone else that you would like to know about?"

"Actually, there is someone." commented Naruto. He figured that he could unnerve the conniving boy a bit before the exam started. "What about you? After all, there has to be something about you that your instructor would think that you were good enough to be a part of the Chunin Exam seven times."

To his credit, Kabuto was able to maintain that innocent façade of his. The only sigh that Naruto's words got to him was his right eye twitching for a second. "Unfortunately that can't be done. I don't see the reason to keep a card of myself. Kind of silly if I did."

Before things could go any further, a strong feeling of hostility was felt. The source of it was soon discovered as coming from the crowd were three individuals but only one of them actually attacked. Whoever the person was they went after only Kabuto who didn't show any concern. The person swung at the glasses wearing boy who avoided it by moving back. Or maybe not because Kabuto fell to his knees and began to puke.

"_What the hell."_ Naruto thought as he was confused at what he saw. _"With how good Kabuto really is, there are only two reasons why he's down. Either he underestimated the person or there's more to this group than meets the eye."_

The group composed of two boys and a girl and none of them seem friendly. One of the boys had large black bush hair that stood up quite a bit and was wearing a tan colored shirt with gray pants. The girl had brown hair that was so long that it actually went pass her waist with only a simple ribbon tied at the end kept it from moving all about and wearing similar clothes as the boy but the shirt had no sleeves and a bit more form fitting. Lastly was the only who actually did the attack. You couldn't tell what he looked like since nearly his whole head was covered in bandages, leaving only his left eye to his ear in the open. Whatever he was wearing couldn't really be seen as he had on a gray poncho that reached to his knees. There also seem to be something on his right arm but couldn't be sure since the sleeves of the poncho covered his arms.

"Oto's a minor village you say?" repeated the bandaged man. "Perhaps you had mistaken us with Konoha."

"Put this in those stupid cards of yours." added the one with the bushy hair. "The team from Oto will all pass the Chunin Exam." It was clear that all three of them agreed with what was said.

Nothing else happened because suddenly a group of men appeared at the front of the room. "That's enough!" shouted apparently the one in charge. He looked intimidating, especially with the three scars going horizontally down his face. "That's enough from you three. Keep that up and you'll be out of here. Do you understand?" There wasn't any actual reply but it was clear that they got the point.

"Pay attention everyone. I'm Ibiki Morino, the one in charge of the first part of the Chunin Exam. Now, find your assigned searts so we can begin the written test." In the hands of the people that came with Ibiki were stacks of papers that were seemingly the tests.

None of those who were there knew what to say. All of them didn't expect to have such a thing right from the start. The first to regain the ability to speak was the usually free speaking Naruto and now wasn't any different. "You got to be fucking kidding me."

**00000000**

"Well, does anyone want to place any bets?" questioned Asuma. While the written test was being given, the Konoha jonin were in a lounge that was for them as they waited to see what'll happen next. "Come one, there are some good odds that I got here."

"You got to be kidding." muttered Kurenai. Putting her hand to her forehead and shook her head in disbelief. "Don't you think that it's a bit wrong to be betting on this?"

"Kurenai's right." added Gai. "To do such a thing is despicable. The same goes for those who take part in such a thing."

"Put fifty on my team to make it pass the first phase." spoke Kakashi. He didn't even look from his book when he placed the bet. Only when he felt the looks from the others did he finally do so. "What? They are my students after all. Besides, there's no harm ni a friendly little bet. I'll even double it if they get pass the second phase."

"My, aren't we the confident one." remarked Asuma. "What could possibly be the reason? We all have confidence in our students but only to a certain extent. Why so confident?"

"Let's just say that my students will be full of surprises." was the only thing that Kakashi said. When he placed his face back in his book it was clear that he wasn't going to elaborate any further.

"As I can recall one of your students was Sasuke Uchiha." recalled Asuma. "It'd be no surprise to see him do well but I've heard that there's someone else in your group that's been making a showing for themselves."

"Ah, you must mean Naruto Uzumaki." acknowledged Gai. "Lee has spoken very approvingly him on occasion. He has been said that he's a great example of the power of youth." Slowly a slightly embarrass look came over Gai's face. "Here's my wager for my team." He then handed Asuma some money. He wouldn't be the only one as Kurenai did the same.

"You're probably right about Naruto." commented Kurenai. "From what I heard and know about the boy there's definitely something interesting about him." She made sure to not say something that would probably cause trouble for the hidden demon host and she believed that she did a good enough job. Unfortunately, Kurenai failed to notice the inquisitive look that Kakashi was giving her.

**00000000**

"So, what do you think of this?" wondered Naruto.

"I don't know. Seems to be intimidating but that's just my opinion." replied Choji. Both him and Naruto were looking at the upcoming challenge and giving their thoughts about it. They weren't the only ones as their friends were right beside them.

"I believe that my opinion is shared by all those that are here." voiced Hinata. What she said was no doubt the truth as all the ones that remained in the exam were clearly feeling some concern about what was to come. "This is pretty frightening when you think about it."

"Don't worry so much you guys. It won't do you any good in doing so." Naruto attempted to reassure his friends. "We got pass the written part without much trouble."

"So says the person whose test was a complete blank." reminded Shikamaru. That reminder caused Naruto to lower his head in embarrassment while the others had to laugh. "Sorry, couldn't help myself."

"No problem. I'm glad to be reminded of that." Naruto remarked sarcastically. Shortly after getting the test, Naruto realized that he didn't know a single answer to any of the questions. Not wanting to be responsible for his team failing he put all his hopes on the tenth question.

When the question finally can his worries just grew after hearing the consequences for not answering correctly. That along with the taunting that Kyuubi was mentally sending him was only making things more difficult. Luckily, Naruto decided to take the tenth question as it guaranteed everyone who did as well to pass the first phase of the exam. That would've been good enough for him but when told about what the true reason for the test he felt the urge to bang his head on the table. Not wanting his blunder to be known he tried to play it off. However, as the tests were being collected, Ino happen to see his paper. Needless to say, mostly everyone found out about it.

But that was in the past and now was onto the second phase. From what had been explained by the sadistic Anko it was an extreme version of capture the flag that killing was not only allowed but seemingly encouraged. Currently all those who remained were given the time to decide if they were willing to continue with something that may cause them to be killed. Not an easy decision to make.

"I don't know about you guys but I'm doing it." Naruto furthered his decision by signing the waiver that released anyone from taking responsibility if they were injured or killed. "Are any of you going to do the same?"

"This whole thing is so troublesome." said Shikamaru. "However, I'll be getting a mouthful from Ino if I quit now and that's something I prefer not to deal with." With that the Nara boy signed the form. Following his friend lead, Choji did the same. Not surprising since he was on the same team as Shikamaru and Ino.

All that was left was Hinata who seemed to be a bit hesitant. Finally, she went ahead and signed her form as well. Clearly she was nervous about what was to come like they all were but couldn't hide it. Shouldn't be that much a surprise since it was no secret on how dangerous the second phase was going to be. Add to the fact that for the next five days that the test was going to happen it would be held in the Forest of Death.

"The next few days are going to be stressful for all of us." announced Shikamaru of the obvious. "But we should make a deal with one another. We try not to go after one another unless there's no other choice. Are we all in agreement?" There was a collective support in that proposal. "Then we're in agreement. Also, remember to not confront the team from Suna that the Gaara kid is on. He's isn't someone that you want to go up against."

"Same goes for the team that has the guy with the glasses, Kabuto." added Naruto. "I don't know why but there's something about him that isn't right." That wasn't necessarily the truth but they didn't have to know the real reason for the concern. _"The less they know the better."_ Thankfully there wasn't any kind of argument from any of them about their friends' judgments.

Not long after it was time for the teams to go to their designated entrances into the forest. Before going though they were given one of the two items that were needed to pass the second phase. That being the heaven scroll, which meant they needed to find a team that had the earth scroll. Of course that was easier said than done.

Immediately after the teams were allowed to go in they did a variety of things. Some hid to set traps, others went after other teams or whatever they thought was the right course of action for them. As for Naruto's team, they carefully made their way on the ground while looking out for any possible attacks.

"Did you guys hear that?" What Sakura was asking about was that something sounded like echoes of people screaming. "What do you think that was about?"

"Perhaps a team losing their scroll." guessed Naruto. He was only slightly worried about what it actually could've been. _"I hope that it wasn't any of my friends. Hopefully all of them make it out of this safely and that they don't run into Gaara."_

"_**Don't be worried about those weak fools."**_ advised his demon tenant, Kyuubi. _**"The one that you should be concerned about is yourself. Forget about the others."**_

"_Shut up, you damn fur ball."_ Naruto shot back. _"I'd never forget my friends. They're one of the reasons why I haven't allowed my demonic side, namely you, to take me over. Now, if you don't mind, I have more important things than talk to you."_

"_**If that's the way you want it then so be it. But be careful."**_ warned Kyuubi. _**"There's something dangerous in this forest and I don't mean Gaara or that Kabuto boy."**_

The sudden concern that the demon fox spirit showed was a definite surprise. _"He probably was trying to mess with my head."_ Though he tried to convince himself that was the case, Naruto couldn't shake the uneasiness that he had been feeling. "Excuse me guys but nature calls." Running off he behind a tree and was about to relieve himself when someone came up from behind and tied him up. "What the hell?"

The person that snuck up on him was a guy wearing a pale yellow jumpsuit and some sort of scuba mask over his mouth. He alone as apparently one of his teammates was with him. Leaning down one of the men pressed a kunai against Naruto's throat. "Hand over your scroll or you're dead."

"Sorry. Don't have it." informed Naruto. "But if you want to I can suggest a change of clothes because what you guys are wearing sucks." Feeling added pressure from the kunai told him that his captors didn't appreciate his fashion advice. As all of that was going on Naruto used the small blade that he kept in his sleeve to slowly cut the rope around his wrists. All he needed was to stall them long enough until he cut through his bindings. "So, what village are you guys from? Ame? Kiri? Taki?"

"We're from Ame and we're not playing around here. If you don't have the scroll then one of your comrades must have it. I guess we'll have to deal with them as well. Of course that's after we take care of you." There was no need for any further explanation about what they meant by that.

"Not a bad plan." admitted Naruto. "But you forgot one thing." Pulling his arms apart the ropes broke away and with his now free hands he pulled the arm that had been holding the kunai away from his neck. "You're not going to have the chance to go after my friends." Using the blade that he had used earlier Naruto threw it into the other Ame shinobi's leg.

While he fell to the ground clutching his leg, Naruto dealt with the one in front of him. Kneeing his now former captor in the gut it caused him to double over. As he was bent over, the blond grabbed the guy's head in a reverse headlock and with one quick movement fell backward and as a result drove the guy head first into the ground. Pushing the now knocked Ame shinobi off of him Naruto went over to the other guy who was trying to pull the blade out of his leg.

"Now, how about you give me your team's scroll?" Naruto asked in a kind voice that was obviously false. "If you do I promise to make the pain go away."

"Fuck you." retorted the wounded Ame shinobi. He tried to hide the pain that he was feeling but wasn't able to do so.

"No thank you." Without warning, Naruto kicked the guy in the head with enough force to knock him out. "I'm interested in girls. At least I kept my promise of stopping the pain. You'll be out of it for sometime." With both of the opposition out of the way, the blond decided to see if they had anything usefully. Except for some decent weapons there wasn't anything of value. With the exception that is of their ream's scroll.

"Damn. We already have a heaven scroll. Oh well, it may be useful later." Putting the scroll away he headed back to his teammates. When he found them he saw that along with them was a tied up and unconscious shinobi that resembled the ones that he dealt with. "Looks like you guys were busy."

"Where were you, you idiot?" questioned Sasuke who wasn't glad that her teammate's late arrival. "It would've been nice to have you here, though it would have mattered."

"Well, sorry. I would've been here sooner but I was ambushed. Apparently from the guys that are in this guy's team. Luckily I was able to get away when they weren't paying attention." That wasn't the complete truth but they didn't have to know everything. Before anything else could be said, the third member of the team intervened and stepped in front of the blond. "Uh, is there a problem Sakura?"

"Your neck." Confused by what she meant by that until he touched the side of his neck and saw blood on his fingers.

"It must've happen when I got ambushed." Another partial lie but close to the truth. "Don't worry. It'll heal in no time."

"Better be safe than sorry." Instead of using a bandage as expected, Sakura's hand became covered in green chakra. Pressing her hand over the cut it began to heal. That was somewhat a shock as it wasn't expected from the female member of the team. Noticing the attention that she was getting, Sakura started to become a bit embarrass.

What? I've became interested in medical ninjutsu. Can't do that much except heal minor injuries. Isn't much, I know but it's a start. Got a problem with that?" Neither boy said a word, not wanting to risk on being on the receiving end of Sakura's wrath.

"Maybe we should leave now." suggested Sasuke. "Don't want to attract anymore attention." No argument was made as the three of them got out of there. Nothing happen for the next couple of hours as they didn't encounter any other teams which was something of a relief. Taking a break they discuss what they should do next. It went for a while until suddenly a strong gust of wind blew them all away.

Took a while but Sasuke and Sakura found each other and were now looking for their blond haired teammate. "Where is he? Could he have gotten hurt when we were separated?" presumed Sakura.

"Or maybe the idiot got himself caught again." predicted Sasuke. "Knowing him we'll probably have to rescue him before he gets in even more trouble."

"There's no need for that Sasuke." Joining the two was their previously missing teammate, Naruto Uzumaki. "Although if I were in trouble I know you would've helped me. After all, you're stronger than me." From out of nowhere, Sasuke threw a kunai at Naruto who was able to move out of the way. "Hey what's the deal? Why did you do that for?"

"Quit the act and tell us who you really are." Confusion came over the group as both Naruto Sakura didn't get what the Uchiha boy meant. "The real Naruto would never admit that I was stronger than him. That's just how much of an idiot he is." Sasuke further explained. "So drop the illusion and show us your true self."

Instead of disputing the claim, Naruto actually smiled. "What a clever boy you are." The voice that was used wasn't one that belonged to Naruto. Another thing was that a longer than normal tongue came out and licked his lips. In a puff of smoke the faux Naruto was gone and was replaced by a taller man wearing a tan colored shirt and black pants. "Not that surprising seeing as who you are."

"Who are you?" questioned Sakura. She was a bit concern about the unknown person but tried to keep up a strong front. "And what have you done with Naruto?"

"My name doesn't matter. As for you bond haired friend." A sinister smile came over the man's face. "Let's just say that he's been detained."

**00000000**

"Let me out of here!" demanded an enraged demon host. His words would go unanswered as his captor didn't release him. "Of all the ways to go out, becoming snake food wasn't even n the list." After that strange wind blew him away from the others, Naruto had the unfortunate experience of being swallowed by a giant snake.

"As soon as I get out of this I'm going to turn you into a pair of snake skinned boots." _"That is _if_ I get out."_ Running out of options and time, Naruto went with the only thing that he could come up with. "All right, you asked for it."

The giant snake simply ignored the boy's threat as it laid there to rest. It wouldn't go that way as a sudden pain came over it. The cause of it would be soon discovered as breaking through the snake's back was the person that it tried to eat. Only now it wasn't Naruto but his other self, Fox.

"I warned you. You should've listened to me." Fox's attack apparently did a good amount of damage as the snake showed no signs of being alive and disappeared in a puff of smoke. _"That must've been a summoning. Whoever summoned it had to be pretty powerful."_

Sure that there wasn't anyone around, Fox changed back into Naruto. Once transforming he jumped into the trees in the hopes that he'd find the other members of his team. _"Hope they've had better luck than I have. Don't know how it could be any worse." _

**00000000**

"I had great hopes for you. I guess I overestimated you." stated the Kusa shinobi in a bit of disappointment. After encountering Sasuke and Sakura he gave them a mental illusion of their potential deaths. The whole experience was so powerful that neither of them could move. Only after Sasuke stabbed him in the leg that he managed to get away with the still frighten Sakura did they regain their ability to move.

There escape would be a short lived one as their pursuer found them again. She clearly wasn't going to allow them to get away no matter what. "Now I believe that it's time to put an end to this game of ours." Wrapping around the tree branch the blood thirsty man went after them.

Before she could reach them a few shurikens were thrown to block his path. "Sorry for being late you guys." Form a higher branch was Naruto who was ready to throw more shurikens if need be. "But I was in a tight spot for a while."

"My compliments Naruto." said the freaky shinobi. By the way that she said it seemed that the blond was nothing more than an afterthought. "I applaud for defeating my snake."

"_So it was her who summoned that snake."_ Naruto figured. _"She's got to be powerful if he was able to summon such a large summoning."_

"_**Don't take her lightly you fool."**_ warned Kyuubi. _**"There's more to her than meets the eye. May be wise you to get away."**_

For the nine-tailed fox to actually suggest running off was a shock. _"Thanks for the advice but I'll have to pass."_ Naruto could hear the fox spirit growl in annoyance. "If you're done messing with my team why don't you deal with me? That is of course if you're not chicken."

"_That idiot doesn't realize who he's messing with."_ thought Sasuke. He was seemingly the only one of his team thinking that as Sakura was glad that someone stepped in to their rescue. _"Have no other choice. It has to be done if we're to get out of this alive."_ Reaching into his pouch he pulled out his team's scroll. "You're after this aren't you? Well, take it and leave us alone."

Throwing the scroll over to the freaky shinobi it was hoped that it would put an end to the whole thing. It wouldn't happen though as an orange and black blur got in the way and grabbed the scroll. That blur was in fact Naruto Uzumaki.

"What are you doing you idiot?" This was going on only angered the Uchiha as it wasn't going according to his plan. "Stay out of this and let me handle it. You'll only make things worse."

Naruto's response to what was going on was a short and simple one. In one quick moment the blond delivered a hard punch that made Sasuke fall to the ground. "How about you shut the hell up and show us who you really are?" That confused all those there who didn't know what he meant by that. "Sasuke, the real Sasuke, wouldn't do such a thing. He may be a pain in the ass prick but he would never be such a fucking coward! Also for all you know that person would still come after us after she got the scroll." That probably hit Sasuke harder than the actual punch as he didn't think about that possibility.

"Wise words Naruto." complimented the Kusa shinobi with a bit of sarcasm. Her tone would quickly disappear and turn into absolute seriousness. "And you're right. Why would I bargain for your scroll when I can just kill you and take it?"

"Like hell you are." retorted an angry Naruto. "None of us are going to die." That made the lady raised her eyebrow in interest. Putting the recovered scroll into his pouch he set his sights on the enemy. "You really want our scroll? Then come and get it." Whether he meant to or not, Naruto was letting some of the demonic chakra to seep out. Along with the chakra, slight changes happened to the bond. His hair became even wilder than usual and the whiskers marks became thicker. All that didn't go unnoticed by those there.

"_Interesting."_ thought the faux Kusa shinobi. Unlike before when she was saying everything that lacked any sincerity, she was truly intrigued. _"Perhaps the Uchiha isn't the only one that I should have my attention on. Maybe a test is in order."_

Rolling up her sleeve it was revealed that there was a tattoo of strange markings were on her arm. Not wanting to know what the tattoo was for, Naruto rushed in to intervene. Before he could get there though, she used her abnormal tongue like a whip to knock him back. With no distractions she bit her thumb and smeared the blood on the tattoo.

"Summoning Jutsu." Emerging was a giant snake and was prepared to do whatever its master commanded. "I believe that it's time to trim the fat." Her statement was more or less aimed toward Naruto who was on his feet again. With a gesture of her hand the snake went after the blond.

Fueled by anger at what was going on, Naruto unknowingly had allowed the demon chakra to alter his abilities. Quickly moving to the side of the snake's charge and plunged a kunai right into its eye. Hissing in pain the snake thrashed about and unfortunately it hit Naruto with enough force that he crashed into a nearby tree and slowing no sign of getting up. When it got over what happen, the snake had wanted revenge on the one that took its now useless eye but was stopped by its summoner.

"Patience. There's something that I want from him." Going over, the crazy lady made her way to the fallen genin. Before getting to him she looked over to the other two that were there. It was as though she was daring them to get involved but neither of them did as they were too shaken to do anything. "I must commend you. You've proven to be more interesting than I originally thought." Reaching into the boy's pouch the lady took out the heaven scroll. "Obviously Jiraiya taught you a few tricks."

Moments later the scroll that was taken exploded. Seconds after, Naruto quickly leapt forward and slashed his hand across the lady's face. "You're right. I've learned a few tricks." What was heard wasn't Naruto's usual voice but a more bestial one. That wasn't the only thing that was different as his fingernails grew to become what seemed like claws and his eyes changed from blue to blood red.

"Fascinating." acknowledged the faux Kusa shinobi. She was clutching the part of her face that had been struck. "There's definitely more to you than what meets the eye." Nothing was said by the blond as he merely growled at her. Removing her hand it was revealed that the skin had completely came off but revealed underneath was what seemed to be a paler face. "Let's see what else there is to you." Like with Naruto, the lady's changed into a more masculine one.

Before anything could be thought about it, the snake suddenly went after Sasuke. Without even thinking, Naruto rushed over and tackled her out of the way. Not having the time to exchange words tried to get over to his other teammate as Sasuke seemed unable to move. "Damn it. I won't make it." Creating a shadow clone it grabbed Naruto's arm and with a mighty swing the real one was sent flying right between Sasuke and the giant snake.

Digging his claws into the snake he hoped to stop its movement. Due to him and hitting the large tree branch stopped it if only barely. "Damn it Sasuke. Snap out of it already." shouted the blond from over his shoulder to the Uchiha, who only now was getting over the shock of what had been going on. As he tried to snap his teammate out of his funk he got caught off by a long tongue wrapping itself all around him. "Hey, let me go you son of a bitch. When I get free I'm so going to kick your ass." Try as he might Naruto wasn't able to free from the tongue lock that he was in.

Lifting the struggling Naruto higher up the enemy shinobi, who was revealed to be a man under the cover of female skin, did a closer look at the boy. It was unknown what he was looking for but whatever it was he must've found it. "Ah, now I see. You're him." Hearing that briefly stopped Naruto's struggling as he had a bad feeling at what that meant.

He wouldn't have the time to think about it as the bottom of his shirt was lifted. Before anything could be done a searing pain was felt in his stomach. The reason being that the guy who was actually a man under female skin jabbed his fingers into him. More precise, in the area where the seal that helped contain the fox spirit. The reaction wouldn't take long to see as the changes that Naruto had went under disappeared. Shortly after returning to normal he became unconscious.

"_Apparently you're as impressive as I was told."_ thought the mysterious let dangerous enemy. _"But you'll just be a thorn in my plans if you're left alone. I should get rid of you if it wouldn't lead to more problems that I prefer to have."_ Without the slightest bit of concern he threw the unconscious Naruto over his shoulder like he was a piece of trash. Certainly the blond would die if it wasn't for Sakura pinning him to a tree with a kunai but showed no signs of waking up.

"Sasuke, you have to do something." Sakura's words were seemingly going on deaf ears as there was no reaction from the Uchiha. When that didn't work she went with the next thing that came to her. "Are you telling me that the great Uchihas are such cowards that they would allow a so called dead last to fight their battles? At least our team has one guy that isn't a coward." It pained Sakura to say such things but she had a reason for doing so. Her words helped to bring back the fire in Sasuke. At least that was part of the reason.

"That's right brother, runaway." taunted a voice in Sasuke's head that sounded familiar. "Runaway and continue to live. Live with the shame of not being strong enough." The voice faded away but not before the sound of mock laughter was heard.

"_No!"_ argued a rejuvenated Sasuke. With his Sharingan awaken and a kunai in hand the Uchiha boy was ready to fight. _"Sakura, Naruto, I finally understand. If I'm not willing to risk my life against this guy then what right do I have to go after _him_?"_ No longer afraid, Sasuke charged in. Try as he might he wasn't to get the upper hand as his older and clearly more experienced opponent. If it wasn't for his Sharingan the fight would've ended a long time ago.

"_Excellent."_ study the dangerous man. _"His Uchiha blood has come to the surface. It'll be interesting how good he'll be as time goes on."_ While he had that analyzing thought going through his head, he failed to notice the wires attached to the shurikens that Sasuke had used while hidden under a fire jutsu. The ending result was him becoming tied to a large tree trunk.

"Fire Style: Dragon Fire Jutsu." Breathing streams of fire they traveled through the wires that were in Sasuke's mouth. Following them they were on a roadmap the fire base attack went straight toward the unnamed enemy. When it hit it resulted in his body being consumed in flames.

"Is it over?" asked Sakura. That question was on the mind of Sasuke as well. Both of them were hoping that the whole situation had finally come to an end. Sadly, that wasn't the case.

Emerging from the flames was the man and with the exception of his clothes being a little singed there didn't appear to be hurt at all. In fact, there was something else that was damaged as the part of his face that Naruto had ripped off earlier became even more destroyed. More of the pale skin was revealed and one of his eyes was yellow and reptilian. The eye was similar to the ones that you would see from a snake.

"I was right about coming after you. You're eyes may be keener than your brother Itachi."

When the man said that name it got Ssauke's immediate attention. How do you know about Itachi?" The Uchiha thought that maybe he could find out the whereabouts of his wayward brother. "Where is he?"

"Forget about him." voiced the strange man. "He's not important now. However, the same can't be said about you." Before any type of retort could be made he did some sort of jutsu that paralyzed the two genin. What came next was a complete shock as the man's neck stretched inhumanly long as he used it to reach his desired target. When he got closer he sunk his teeth into Sasuke's neck. After a few seconds he let go and returned his neck closer to his body.

Whatever paralyzing technique that was use to keep them from moving had ended and when it did, Sakura hurried over to Sasuke who was on his hands and knees in intense pain. Looking at where he was bit she saw that close by the bite mark was a black pinwheel mark. What it meant was a mystery to her but it didn't matter to Sakura now as she was more concern about her not secret crush. "What have you done to Sasuke?"

"All I've done was give him a gift." answered the man as he started to merge with the tree that he had been standing on. "I've given Sasuke a taste of my power. Due time he'll seek me, Orochimaru, out to gain even more." There was nothing else said by the man, finally identifying himself as Orochimaru as he completely sunk into the tree and after a few tense moments it was concluded that he was no longer in the area.

Although relieved that the threat was no longer around, Sakura become concerned about the condition of Sasuke as he let out an agonizing scream before passing out. "Please hand on. "Naruto, Sasuke's hurt. What do we-" Her words remained unsaid as she saw that the blond was still hanging unconscious on a tree.

With everything that happened and with the predicament that her team was in, Sakura only had one thing going through her head. "What do I do?" No answer was given as the only thing that could be heard was the sound of the birds and the light whimpering that Sakura tried to hold in.

* * *

Well, was it a good way to start off this arc? I know I didn't stary far from what happen in the actual series when it came to the fight between Team 7 and Orochimaru which I apologize. I just couldn't think of anything that would be greatly different. I did do some things that I'm glad that I was able to do. Basically skimming through the whole first phase of the exam because I thought that it would better that way that trying to do a revamp version.

Having Naruto taking the scroll from the Ame shinobi will touched upon in the next chapter. Most likely you know what I'm headed toward involving that. The hostile meeting between Naruto and Kabuto was something I liked as well as you could tell that Naruto would like nothing better than to go after Kabuto but couldn't without possibly revealing his secret.

I hoped that you guys liked the chapter and I'll do my best in updating again soon. Unitl then, see ya and please go ahead and leave a review before going.


	26. Ambush

Well, here the newest chapter and the next part of the Chunin Exam. A little heads up this is the wrap up of the second phase of the exam. To know what happens you'll just have to read the chapter. Now for the disclaimer, I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Chapter 26:  
Ambush

"It'll be daylight soon. Other teams will be making camp and it'll be the perfect time to attack." informed Neji. He and his team had taken a breather while coming up with a plan. "We'll split up and look for another team. If you find one don't confront them without all of us there. After an hour we meet back here, no matter what. Everyone is in agreement?" Both Lee and TenTen nodded their heads in approval. "Then let's move out."

With that the three of them headed off in opposite directions. Each of them hoping to find the person or group that had the scroll that they needed. Throughout the hour neither Neji or TenTen didn't have any luck but the same wouldn't be said for the third member of their team. It wasn't until they returned at the meeting place did they realize that something must've happen to Lee. So once again the two of them went on the search only this time it was for their missing teammate.

**00000000**

"We're almost at the tower." exclaimed Kiba. It was the second day of the second phase of the exam and the team of Kiba, Shino and Hinata were on the verge of completing it. "We were lucky that the first team that we came across had the scroll that we needed. Now we'll have the chance to rest up for a couple of days before whatever is going to happen next."

"We would've been there on the first day if we didn't run into the team from Suna." recalled Shino. The mentioning of that incident caused all of them to become quiet. Even Akamaru, who was ridding inside of Kiba's coat, said nothing with the exception of a few whimpers. That wasn't surprising after what they saw just a day ago.

**00000000**

Flashback, a Day Ago…

Shortly after getting their needed scroll Kiba, Shino and Hinata headed straight for the tower. Look like they would get there without much trouble. That all change when Akamaru caught the scent of something. With the help of Hinata's Byakugan it was discovered that not that far ahead of them was a prelude to a fight between two teams. Becoming curious, Kiba suggested that they should check it out.

Getting there but staying hidden they watched what was going on. One of the teams was the group from Suna while the other was slightly older men from Ame. At first glance it seemed like the shinobi of Ame had the advantage as they demanded the Suna shinobis' scroll. That wouldn't be the case at what happened next.

Stepping forward the one named Gaara stated in a voice of certainty declared that they were dead. In retaliation for not doing as they said one of the Ame shinobi sent a storm of poison needles at the redhead. All of that would be for nothing as every needle were stopped by a shield of sand protecting Gaara who hadn't move a muscle the whole time.

"You annoy me." Gaara said in a bored tone. "It's time to make the sky rain blood." What happened next would be something that no one would forget. Slowly the sand wrapped itself around the shinobi that attacked to the point that only his face was left uncovered. But that would soon be covered as well after some futile pleas were made.

"Desert Funeral." In one move Gaara had the sand crush the man to the point that his blood sprayed out in what resembled rain. No doubt about it, the man was dead and all the while the redhead didn't bat an eye. As for his teammates, they were a little unsettled by what they saw but say nothing.

Not wanting to share the same fate as their teammate the two remaining Ame shinobi gave up their scroll for their lives. Their bargain would be denied as Gaara made them share the same fate by crushing their bodies with two more Desert Funerals. After all of that the ground and everything around was drench in blood.

"We got lucky." acknowledged Kankuro as he picked up the fallen scroll. "They had the scroll that we needed. Now we can head for the tower." Sounded like a reasonable idea but one of them thought differently. "Come on, Gaara. Let's go."

"No. I want more." Looking out toward who knows, the young Suna shinobi appeared to be annoyed. "I want _his_ blood." When saying that he sounded even more sadistic.

Understanding who Gaara was referring to, Kankuro decided to try and reason with him. "Listen. We know that you want to go after him but now isn't the time. As your older brother I'm asking you to wait to deal with Naruto Uzumaki."

"You're mistaken. I never once have I thought of you as my brother." Gaara announced in complete honesty. "If you get in my way I'll kill you as well."

"Please Gaara, do it as a favor for your sister." Temari pleaded. She hoped that it would prevent her brother from following up with his threat. "If Naruto is really worth your attention then he'll certainly make it to the tower. Just wait a little longer and you'll get your chance."

For a while the two siblings didn't know what their younger brother was going to do but luckily he conceded to their request. As the three of them headed for the tower they seemed to fail to notice of the team that had secretly witnessed the entire encounter. After waiting for a bit they left the area as well but going in a entirely different direction.

End of Flashback…

**00000000**

Soon after they left the scene, Kiba and his teammates set camp and when the next day began they resumed their journey to the tower. "Though we spent another day in the forest I rather avoid running into that Gaara guy." Both Shino and Hinata didn't say anything but they were in agreement. "Especially after seeing what he did to those Ame shinobi."

"But why was he so interested in Naruto?" inquired Shino. "Does it have anything to do with why Naruto warned us about staying away from Gaara?"

No real explanation could be figured out and would be left unanswered as they finally arrived at the tower. Before going in, Hinata glanced back into the forest. _"I hope that Naruto and the others come out of this safely."_

**00000000**

As soon as Naruto opened his eyes he knew that something was off. Instead of seeing the forest that the second phase of the Chunin Exam, he saw a ceiling with pipes exposed that was all too familiar. Getting to his feet Naruto started walking toward a specific location. All the while paying no attention to the water that covered the floor that he was on the floor.

Going through several passages the blond would make it to where he wanted to be. "Well, I'm here." In front of him were the large bar doors that helped to contain the demon the other side. "What do you want?"

From the other side were two large red eyes opening and set their sights on the blond. "Finally you arrive. I was beginning to grow impatient." Naruto merely looked on without the least bit of being sorry. "I warned you to stay away from that person but you didn't listen."

"Well, excuse me. I saw my team in trouble and I wasn't going to stand back and do nothing." retorted Naruto. Not showing any concern that he was arguing with a deadly fox demon. "I may have been beaten by whoever that guy was but at least I was able to make sure that he wouldn't forget about me anytime soon."

Thinking back at what happen during that fight, Naruto remembered something that was said. "Did that guy really know that I was Fox? If so then I have a feeling that it'll only lead to even more trouble." Putting that bit of concern on hold he focused at the matter at hand. "Is there a reason why you had me come here or what?"

"Just watch yourself." Kyuubi simply stated. "Your body won't be working properly for sometime. Now wake up." In a blinding light Naruto was removed from the part of his subconscious that the nine-tailed fox dwelled.

**00000000**

Opening his eyes again Naruto saw that he was back in the forest. He tried to get up but discovered that he couldn't even lift his head. _"I guess the fox was telling the truth about my body being messed up."_ Trying to get up again only resulted in the same thing happening.

Gratefully Naruto was able to turn his head from side to side and noticed a few things. On one side of him was Sasuke who was unconscious for some reason. Forgetting about him he looked over to the other side and he instantly didn't like was he was seeing. What he saw was Lee on the ground and having trouble getting back up which left Sakura to defend them all from the three shinobi from Oto.

Despite being outnumbered Sakura fought bravely, using substitutions to confuse the opposition. In the end she was no match for them and was at their mercy, which he doubted they had any. Wanting to help in some way Naruto tried to move but found it pointless. _"Who am I kidding? I can't even lift my arms let alone create any shadow clones. There's nothing I can do."_

While that may have been the case for Naruto, the same couldn't be said for others as three people entered the scene. "This is a fine mess that you've gotten yourself into, forehead." said a familiar bleach blonde girl, Ino Yamanaka. Along side with her were teammates, Shikamaru and Choji. "Luckily we happen to be passing by and decided to step in when we did."

Soon Ino's team and the Oto team fought one another. For a while it seemed like the shinobi from Konoha had the advantage by using their family abilities but slowly the tide started to turn. As all of this went on, a foul feeling began to come from Sasuke who was starting to move.

None of them seem to notice the unusual feeling except for Naruto and that was only because he was laid beside him. _"What's this feeling that I'm getting? What happen while I was passed out?"_ He didn't have the chance to think about it as he again lost consciousness.

**00000000**

"Enough of this." stated Dosu. "We've wasted enough time with these pathetic nobodies. Take care of the target already, Zaku."

"Gladly." Going over, Zaku was prepared to kill the two unconscious boys. "This'll be fun. There's nothing better than a quick and easy kill." He was just about to go through with it until something happen that put a halt to it.

Standing up was Sasuke but he was different. On various parts on the left side of him were black markings and the foul feeling that no of them felt earlier was clearer felt which instantly put all of them on edge. It was so strong that you could see a purple chakra surround the Uchiha.

"Who did that to you, Sakura?" What Sasuke was referring to was the beating that she received. "Which one was it?"

"It was me." announced Zaku with a snug tone. "What are you going to do about it?" The answer would come as with incredible speed Sasuke got behind him and grabbed both of his arms. Struggling to get free, Zaku discovered that was impossible.

"Apparently you're very attached to these arms of yours." Slowly a sadistic smile came across Sasuke's face. "It'll be a shame if something were to happen to them." The smile only grew as he pulled even harder on the arms until one of them being separated completely from the shoulder. _"This power that's flowing through me is incredible. I've never felt anything like it before."_

While all of this was going on, Sakura looked on in concern. _"This isn't Sasuke. What's wrong with him?"_ She then remembered what happened with the man called Orochimaru and started to understand. Not being able to see the person she deeply cared for she rushed in without a second thought and embraced Sasuke from behind.

"Please. That's enough Sasuke. This isn't you." From the corner of his eye, Sasuke at looked at her with contempt but slowly faded away as he saw the tears flowing freely from Sakura's eyes. "You can stop now. There isn't any need for you to fight anymore. So, please stop."

An intense moment was felt by everyone there as it was unknown what Sasuke would do. They wouldn't have to wait long as slowly the markings that were on his body started to be absorbed back into the pinwheel mark on his neck. When that was done Sasuke fell to the ground in exhaustion. He was luckily helped down by Sakura who was glad that he had seemingly returned back to normal.

"We give up." declared Dosu. During the whole situation he got his teammates who were in no condition to move on their own. "You're stronger than any of us, Sasuke Uchiha. In the hopes that you let us go we offer our scroll as payment." He went ahead and placed their Earth scroll on the ground. "Be warned that the next time we meet there won't be any retreating from us." That said the Oto shinobi took their leave. No one tried to stop them as there was more important things to deal with.

After they left, Sakura used her limited knowledge of medical ninjutsu to help heal Lee. Originally she was going to treat Sasuke but he refused and not wanting to argue with him after what happen she let it go. Sakura didn't even bother to offer the same thing for Naruto as she was told that he was all right and whatever injuries that he may have, his quick healing would do the job. Speaking of which, Naruto started to make his way to her after having a few words with Shikamaru.

"How is he? He appears to have gotten a beaten while I was out of it." Remembering that he had been unconscious throughout most of the fight left a bad taste in Naruto's mouth. "I may have been able to do something it wasn't for that man doing whatever it was to me." Thinking of that reminded him of something that he wanted to ask.

"Sakura, what happen while I was knocked out?" His pink haired teammate didn't give an answer as she looked away. It was easy to tell that she was hiding something. Not wanting to push the topic he went for something smaller. "Could you at least tell me that he said who he was before he left?"

Again there was hesitation in Sakura answering but seemed to have decided to tell him. "Yes he did. Before leaving he said that his name was Orochimaru." Hearing that caused Naruto to stiffen up but managed to hide it. Do you know who that is?"

"Afraid I don't." lied the boy. "I don't have a clue at who he could be." Naruto of course knew better. _"Why would he be here? What could he possibly want and what reason could he have for coming after us?"_

Naruto wouldn't have the time to think about it as about that time Neji and TenTen arrived to retrieve Lee who seemed to have recovered enough to get around on his own. A few words, both good and bad, were exchanged between them until only Naruto and his teammates were left. "Well, what do we do now?" wondered the spiky haired boy.

"We should rest up for a while before we go searching for the other scroll that we need." suggested Sasuke. Naruto just looked at him in confusion.

"Don't you remember?" Sakura asked her teammate. "Our Heaven scroll that you had was taken by that strange guy before he made you pass out. We now have the Earth scroll that the Oto team left but we have to find a replacement Heaven scroll."

"A replacement?" Reaching into his weapon's pouch Naruto pulled out a Heaven scroll. "You mean like this?" Seeing the item that they needed was a surprise to both Sasuke and Sakura. "I managed to get my hands on it after being ambushed by that team on the first day. Kept it incase we needed it for a bargaining chip or something." Being kept in the dark didn't sit well with his two teammates.

"Sorry about not telling you but the less people who knew the better. After all, I'm doubtful that the guy who attacked us knew that we had two Heaven scrolls instead of just one." Naruto explained his reasoning. "Now how about we skip the resting part and head for the tower?" No argument was made as the tired and battered team hurried to complete the second phase.

**00000000**

"You finally arrived." Inside of the tower but away from any prying eyes was Orochimaru. He no longer had on the disguise of the Ame shinobi and whatever injuries that he may have sustained were now gone. Presently he was having a conversation with a team. "We're you able to complete the task that was given to you Kabuto?"

"Afraid not my Lord." informed Kabuto. He showed no fear as he told the dangerous man the bad news. "I was unable to make contact with Sasuke and his team. Apparently they arrived at the tower shortly after fighting with your minions." The grey haired spy paused as it was unknown how the pale skinned man would react. "I thought you made sure that they lost their original scroll. It would then allow me the chance to come to their aid and gain their trust. What could've gone wrong?"

"I may have an idea." Flashing back to the confrontation Orochimaru remembered his little scuffle that had with the spiky haired member of the team. _"I guess the boy was smarter than I gave him credit for."_ Coming up with an idea he looked over to his Konoha spy.

"Don't worry. It's only a minor inconvenience. For now we follow the rest of the plan. But have Dosu meet with me. There something I wish to say to him that he may find interesting." Nodding his head in understanding Kabuto and his two teammates went further into the tower. Unable to himself, Orochimaru let a sinister a little smile to come out. _"At least this'll make things more interesting."_First off, I know I somewhat replicated what happen in the actual series when it came to the genin team from Oto and to be honest it was because I couldn't think of anything better than that.

* * *

First off, I know that I somewhat replicated what happen in the actual series when it came to the genin team from Oto attacking the others and to be honest, it was because I couldn't think of anything better. Sorry but that's the truth.

As I mentioned in the author notes in the previous chapter, I had a reason for the Ame team being taken care out early and here it was. Just one of my twists and I didn't want to have Team Kakashi having to team with Kabuto to get a scroll and reach the tower. What happens in the next chapter you'll just have to wait to find out and I promise I'll do my best in having it out soon.


	27. Preliminary

A little heads up, this chapter is the first of three chapters that'll focus on the elimination matches between the 2nd and 3rd phase of the Chunin Exam. I considered to just mentioned the matches but there are other things that happen that wouldn't really work if I did that. Hopefully I made the right decision. The disclaimer, I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Chapter 27:  
Preliminary

When they arrived at the tower, the team of Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura took the time to recover from the injuries that they had received while in the Forest of Death. All three of them were so glad to be out of there that none of them cared that there were already so many teams there. Though when Hinata had told Naruto about her team's unpleasant encounter with Gaara's team put the blond a little at edge as he realized that the fellow demon host had his sights set on him.

That would be put on the backburner as he thought about the conversation that he had with Shikamaru after his team showed up not long after they arrived. Naruto had asked his friend what he knew when he had been unconscious and with the exception of telling him that was strange markings and chakra that had came from Sasuke there wasn't anything of real importance. In exchange he told Shikamaru about what had happen with the person known as Orochimaru which let to some very helpful information was given.

When the second phase of the Chunin Exam had come to an end only seven teams had made it, making the total of twenty-one shinobi passing. The genin weren't the only ones there as standing before them were the jonin senseis for each team, a few other jonins and last but not least, the Third Hokage of Konoha, Sarutobi.

Having their undivided attention the Hokage started to explain what the real reason behind the Chunin Exam but before he could go any further someone intervened. His name was Hayate Gekko and by what he was wearing he was a jonin and with the constant coughing that was heard it was wondered if he was healthy or something.

"Before the third phase of the exams can start, there's something that you must do." informed Hayate. "Seems as though the first two phases were too easy as there are too many of you that have made it this far. Therefore, to narrow it down even further, a preliminary round needs to happen to see who truly go on to the third phase of the exam." Of course the genin there weren't happy to hear the news as there were complaints and cursing. They would only get worse as it was revealed that the preliminary would begin immediately.

"Before we start though, is there anyone hear who feels as though they're not able to continue anymore or wish to quit? If so then say so now." Though they weren't in favor of the surprise announcement there was no sign of any of them quitting. That was until someone raised their hand.

"I'm quit." announced Kabuto Yakushi. What he gave as a reason was that his body was too beat up to do anymore fighting and while that was a reasonable excuse a certain blond haired boy thought otherwise.

"_What the hell are you planning Kabuto?"_ wondered Naruto to himself. _"You would have no trouble beating most of the people here. So why suddenly quit? Does it have something to do with that bastard snake man?"_ Naruto wouldn't have the chance to think about it any further as he caught from the corner of his eye he saw that Sasuke was arguing with Sakura while clutching the side of his neck. _"Appears as though I'm not the only one received a 'gift' from that Orochimaru guy."_

"The preliminaries will be simple one-on-one matches." explained Hayate, seemingly the proctor for the prelims. "Two people will fight until one can't continue. Whether that's by knockout, admitting defeat or dieing doesn't matter. However, if it's clear that the match has become a one-sided affair I'll step in and stop the match. The matches will be randomly made by electronic scoreboard. Now, let's found out who'll be in the first match."

All eyes were focus on the scoreboard as the names of the genin there randomly go across. This went on for a while until it finally settled on two names.

**Sasuke Uchiha  
****vs.  
****Kin Tsuchi**

"_So, the first one out, huh?"_ thought Sasuke who couldn't be any happier. That would be short lived as pain was felt from the mark on his neck. _"The pain isn't going away." _As everyone else headed for the balcony that surrounded where the fights were going to happen Kakashi Hatake made his way to his student.

"Sasuke." spoke in a quiet voice. It was evident that what he wanted to say was meant for just the Uchiha. "Don't use your Sharingan. If you do the curse mark will become active and if that's the case I'll step in and have the match stopped." Not allow Sasuke the chance to argue Kakashi went to join his other students on the balcony.

"So, you're my opponent." acknowledged Kin. She clearly was please how the pairing went for her. "This is a good of a way to finish what was starting in the forest." Already in the sound shinobi's hand were two senbon needles.

Sasuke didn't come up with any retort as he was distracted by the pain of the mark on his neck. _"The moments of pain are coming more frequently. There's so intense that I can hardly stay on my feet."_ When the latest pain spasm passed, Sasuke practically pried his hand from that particular part of his neck and tried to focus on the upcoming fight.

Quickly moving out of the way of the oncoming needles he decided to try and end it as soon as possible. However, when he tried to use one of familiar jutsus the intense pain from before returned. The sudden burst of pain would cost him as it cause him to leave himself open for another set of needles, only there were three instead of two.

All those who were witnessing the whole thing a various opinions to what they were seeing. Some were disappointed at what they were seeing. Others were angry or worried as they knew that Sasuke was better than this and there were others who couldn't help but be confused as they knew what was going on but kept quiet about it.

"_What the hell is going on? Sasuke's better than this."_ wondered Naruto to himself. _"Does it have something to do with what happened with Orochimaru?"_ He wanted to ask Sakura what the deal might be but when seeing the concern look on the girl's face he decided to keep quiet. Maybe in time he'd find out what was going on.

Someone else finding the situation interesting and that was Sasuke's opponent, Kin. _"I guess he hasn't fully recovered from what happened in the forest and it's__ starting to become a problem for him. Perhaps I should put him out of his misery."_

Throwing another group of needles Kin put her plan into action. Unnoticed anyone, one of the needles that were thrown had a bell attached to him. Along with it was a string with the other end in the girl's hand. With a smirk on her face she gave the string a tug which caused the bell to ring. What she was planning soon became clear as before Sasuke's eyes were suddenly multiple Kins.

"What's the matter? Are you starting to see things?" It was impossible to tell which one was the real Kin as all of them were doing everything at the same time. "This is illusion is one of my specialties. Once the sound reaches your brain there's no way to block it and makes it impossible for you to find which one of us is real." That would be followed up as the Kins threw another set of senbon needles.

Like she said Sasuke couldn't tell which ones were real and in the end a few of them stuck into him. _"Damn it. This would be so easy to deal with if I used my Sharingan."_ As if to argue against such an idea, the curse seal started to react. _"I can't use it though. I'll be taken out of the exams if I did. I want to be stronger so I can kill _him_."_ Coming up with something else, Sasuke put it into action. Ignoring the pain as much as possible he started to do some hand signs. "Great Fireball Jutsu." Breathing out a stream fire it turned into a large fireball.

Fearing for her safety she moved out of the way but in the end the Uchiha managed to get what he was aiming for. Though the fire didn't get Kin, it did get the string that she had been using. The string was consumed in flames and as a result, put an end to the illusion that was used.

Getting what he wanted, Sasuke ended the jutsu and immediately paid for using it as the mark started to expand outward. _"Damn it. Not now."_ Luckily the people that were on the balcony couldn't get a good look at what was happening.

"_Excellent."_ exclaimed Orochimaru while under the disguise of the Oto jonin shinobi. _"Allow that marvelous curse mark to become a part of you to the point that it's impossible to tell where you end and where it starts."_ The delight that the disguised pale skin man was feeling would become slightly diminish when the shouts of someone was heard throughout the area.

"What are you doing Sasuke?" shouted Naruto. "Is that the best that the Uchiha can be?" His remarks didn't go unpunished as he received hits to the head by both Sakura and Ino. Those words just seem to give Sasuke an added burst of strength.

With great effort he forced the mark back to its dormant state. _"I can't afford to do another jutsu. I have to rely on taijutsu. But what to use?"_ It was then that Sasuke happened to catch a glimpse of a certain someone up on the balcony and it was then that he came up with an idea. In a bit a quick burst of speed, Sasuke appeared below Kin and delivered a swift upper kick.

There was enough force behind it that it sent the female Oto shinobi into the air. While in the air Sasuke seemingly mimic her as he was now behind Kin. Not allowing her the opportunity to do anything he delivered a kick to the left side followed with a backhanded strike to the face. That wouldn't be all as Kin received a straight punch to the get that sent her to the ground and was finished off when Sasuke did a spinning kick that hit her sternum.

Both of the competitors didn't move for a while and it was thought that the match would end in a draw. That wouldn't be the case though as slowly Sasuke managed to get back up. Though he was standing on shaking legs he was still standing. Going over to see what Kin's condition was, Hayate Gekko determined that she couldn't compete anymore. "The winner of the match: Sasuke Uchiha."

Cheers were heard from some of the spectators from that announcement. The loudest were coming from the members of the Uchiha's fan group, Sakura and Ino. The boy in question wasn't even paying much attention as he was struggling to stay up in a sitting position. He would get assistance when Kakashi appeared behind him and kept him up.

"Good job." All that Sasuke gave as a response was a slight smirk. _"Apparently he was able to memorize the Lion's Barrage from his altercation that he had with Lee. But it seemed like he didn't pay from using it."_ Kakashi figured that since he saw the boy tense up a bit. Soon the medical team entered and stretcher the unconscious Kin and were about to offer the same for Sasuke but was stopped by Kakashi.

"There's no need for you guys. I'll take care of him. Now let's be going and get that curse mark sealed." Sasuke was about to make an argued that he wanted to watch the rest of the matches but was quickly silenced. Recognizing that there wasn't no way for the decision to be reversed the boy followed his sensei out of the arena for some reason.

From the balcony Naruto glance over to Sakura from the corner of his eye and saw that she had a concern look on her face. When she caught his stare she looked away and a guilty expression came over her face. _"She's got an idea what's going on with Sasuke. Unfortunately she doesn't want to say what it is. Guess I'll have to find out another way."_

"Will the two next opponents please come down so we can start the second match." announced Hayate. It seemed as though the participants of the next match was declared when the blond was in thought. Looking over to the scoreboard he saw who they were.

**Misumi Tsurugi  
****vs.  
****Shino Aburame**

While Naruto had a good idea what Shino was like the opposite was said about the other competitor. To make matters even more uneasy Misumi was one of the partners of that traitorous bastard, Kabuto's team. Whether he was a spy like his teammate was unknown. Only time will tell.

"Just to warn you, I don't show mercy to anyone. But if you ask now I may go easy on you. No promises though." taunted Misumi. He hoped to shake his opponent up a bit but he didn't get as much as a flinch. _"What is this kid's deal? He's should at least show some kind of reaction."_

"Are you done talking?" inquired Shino in a disinterest tone. "I wish to end this soon." The lack of concern that was being shown by the Aburame boy about his opponent unexpectedly angered Misumi. It took great effort for him to keep from attacking until Hayate signaled for the match to start. As soon as the match began Misumi went at him and tried to attack with a kick.

The attack wouldn't do any good as Shino had easily avoided the attempt and followed it up with a palm thrust to the back. Wanting to do what he had said earlier, Shino tried to deliver what hopefully would be a knockout punch. That wouldn't the case however as it was avoided but that wasn't the surprising thing about it. After ducking the blow, Misumi's arm started to extend and go around Shino's arm. It wouldn't be the only thing to do so as most of the body of Misumi began to wrap itself throughout Shino's body.

"You should've taken my advice when you had the chance." Misumi exclaimed as he tighten the grip on his opponent. "My body has been altered so that I can stretch it or constrict beyond normal situations. It proves to be useful when I do undercover work." He took notice that Shino was trying to escape from predicament and had to chuckle at the futile attempt.

"Don't even bother. There's no way that you escape from my grip. Now surrender while you have the chance. If not, then I'll just have to put an end to it in my own way." In response, Shino merely continued with his efforts to escape. _"What a foolish child. May as well set an example for the others watching."_ With what would've been seen as a smirk if it wasn't for the shroud that was over his face, Misumi started to squeeze the boy even more to the point that it would be difficult to breath.

As he did this he suddenly started to feel weaker. There was no reason to explain it but he didn't have to since Shino was more than willing to give him an explanation. "You've started to notice haven't you?" commented Shino. "While you were focus on putting the squeeze on me you failed to notice my little friends that got on your back." Looking over his shoulder, Misumi saw that covering most of his back was a swarm of insects. "Those particular insects can drain a person chakra in a matter of minutes. If not dealt with soon then the person can end up possibly losing their life."

Having no more energy to hold him anymore, Shnio managed to free himself completely of Misumi's hold. Once that was done he put an end to it by delivering a spinning back fist to the side of his opponent's head. That combined with lack of chakra resulted in Misumi falling to a heap to the floor and showing no signs of getting back up. "Winner of the match: Shino Aburame." After the announcement was made all of the insects crawled off of the defeated man and up the sleeves of the victorious Shino.

**00000000**

Unbeknownst by anyone but while the match between Shino and Misumi was going on, a type of ceremony was happening. In the catacombs of an isolated area were Sasuke who was sitting in the center of a large seal that went on him and circled around the curse mark.

"Now just hold on a little longer." exclaimed the only other person there, Kakashi Hatake. Doing a series of hand signs he placed a hand on top. "Evil Sealing Method." With that all of the seal markings came together until they encircled the curse mark. "That should do the trick. But remember, the seal will only be affective as long as your will is strong. If you don't the curse mark will go out of control." Sasuke didn't even bothered to make any comment as the whole sealing process took a lot out of him as he collapsed to the ground in exhaustion.

"Ah, quite impressive of you Kakashi." spoke someone with a raspy voice. Becoming alert Kakashi turned around and saw that emerging from behind a pillar was a man with yellow reptilian eyes. Right away the jonin knew who the person was.

"Orochimaru. What are you doing here?"

"Long time no see. You certainly have grown." spoke Orochimaru with the least bit of concern. "Though, I'm not here to see you. I'm here for the boy on the ground behind you."

"Why would you want Sasuke?" questioned Kakashi, trying to keep the concern from showing. He then had a guess what it could've been. "You want his Sharingan. The bloodline limit of the Uchiha family is what you crave for."

"Why should I not?" Orochimaru replied who wasn't even trying to deny such a speculation. "You already have it. A Sharingan is your left eye. I want it too. It would prove to be very useful to me and my village. The newly created, Oto."

"Then what are the genin that came from _your_ village? Are they merely pawns for you to use?" The snide sinister smile that came over the paled skin man's face was all that Kakashi needed for confirmation. "What of Sasuke? Is he just another pawn for you to use?"

"No. Sasuke's more than just a pawn. He's a very important piece." Sticking his tongue out, Orochimaru let out his large tongue and licked his lips from side to side. "I've got great plans for him."

"Well, I'm going to have to throw a wrench into your plans." Getting into position, Kakashi started to perform his patented Chidori. "Though you may be one of the three great shinobi but I can least compete against you." He tried to further his intimidating by putting even more power into the Chidori. Unfortunately, the reaction that Kakashi got was one that he wasn't looking for as Orochimaru started to laugh.

"How amusing it is that you think that seal you place will actually do something. To reach one's goal a person will receive anything to accomplish it. Even if it is from what has been deemed as evil. The boy is no different." Turning around Orochimaru started to walk away. "Sasuke will seek me out to gain power."

"You think that you know Sasuke?" Kakashi shot back. "He's nothing like you and you don't know anything about him."

Stopping on his departure, Orochimaru glanced over to the jonin. "And you think that you do? Obviously you don't really know your student. That's funny since you don't even know of the power that one of the other genin truly possess." Looking away he stretched his arms out. "But as I recall, you said that you would kill me. Why not take a shot? That is of course, if you can."

Before Kakashi's eyes were images of him dieing in gruesome ways. The visions were so intense that copycat jonin unknowingly let his Chidori faded away. With his one visible eye he watched as Orochimaru walk into the darkness and disappear. Only when he was certain that he was gone did Kakashi let out the breath that he had been holding. _"Me going against someone like him? What a fool I was. But what did he mean by the power that one of the genin possess?" _That would have to wait as he needed to get the still unconscious Sasuke to the hospital.

**00000000**

**Temari  
****vs.  
****Zaku Abumi**

"Hurry up. I want to get this over with as soon as possible." muttered Temari. She wasn't showing any signs of worry as she just leaning against her large fan. "Though, judging by who I'm up against this shouldn't take that long."

"Oh, you're a feisty one I see." Zaku voiced in amusement. Both of his arms were wrapped tightly as they were still injured from when Sasuke pulled them out of their sockets. Fortunately for him though he was still able to move them if only barely. "I like that. Maybe after I beat you here I may be willing to take you out somewhere." He seemed pretty confident with himself even though both of his arms were not in good condition.

"No thank you. You're not my type." As Temari said that she did a side glance to where Naruto which didn't go unnoticed. "I'm not really into those who are weak." The girl from Suna had to smirk when she saw the angry look that came over the shinobi from Oto. It only seem to smirk grow when she opened her fan completely. "If you don't mind I'm going to end this match quickly."

Soon Hayate motioned for the match to begin. When that happen one of the competitors instantly went on the attack and surprisingly it wasn't Temari. "You shouldn't underestimate me. If you do it may result in that pretty head of yours being taken off your shoulders." Raising the one are that had just hang there at his side, Zaku opened his palm. "Air Slicing Blast." Coming through the air tunnel that was in his arm a blast of high pressured air and it was heading straight for female shinobi from Suna. When the attack was ended it was expected that Temari would be out of commission but instead there wasn't any sight of here anywhere. "What the hell? Where is that bitch go?"

"I'd be over here." From behind Zaku was a clearly unharmed Temari. Slowly an unpleasant look came over the girl's face. "Also, I don't take kindly to being called a bitch. Even though there are times that I can act like one." Taking firm hold of her fan she prepared to return the favor for the attack moments ago. "Cutting Whirlwind Jutsu."

Sweeping her fan forward it created strong gusts of wind that were mixed with chakra. Those things combined it created a windstorm that actually cut parts of the stone floor. Soon as the chakra empowered windstorm reached Zaku it wrapped itself around him. To put it bluntly, it quickly sliced through various parts of his body and while all the while had lifted him up into the air. When the windstorm stopped the cut and bloody body of Zaku crashed to the ground.

"The winner of the match: Temari." determined Hayate. He didn't even wait to announce his decision as it was clear that the Oto shinobi wasn't going to be getting up anytime soon.

**00000000**

"That girl is strong." muttered Sakura. The viciousness that the girl from Suna had shown was scary as she showed no mercy toward an opponent that was already hurt. _"If I were to fight her I would lose in no time."_ Moving away from that thought the pink haired girl remembered something that happened while the match was going on. "Better be careful Naruto. It looks like that girl has become interested in you."

"_More like she's interested in me being Fox."_ Naruto corrected to himself. _"Probably finds it interesting that someone is so willing to taunt her brothers without hesitation."_ "I know Sakura. Too bad though, she's not really my type." A sudden small gust of wind was felt behind them and when they turned around they saw their sensei, Kakashi. "Finally decided to show up? Taking time from your book?"

"Sorry about the wait. I needed to take care of some things." informed Kakashi, completely ignoring Naruto's sarcastic comments. Noticing the concern on Sakura's face he went ahead and explained further. "Don't worry about Sasuke. He's okay and sleeping in the Konoha hospital." _"And having the ANBU Black Op keeping and eye on him."_

Unable to help himself, Kakashi looked at his two other students. _"Could what Orochimaru had hinted about been about one of them? If so, then could the one that had been referring to was…"_ He didn't finish that thought as he focus his attention toward Naruto who had returned to the arena as the participants for the next match had been determined and the next match was about to begin. _"What could Naruto have that would gain the attention of one of the three sanin? Whatever it is it can't be good if someone like Orochimaru has become interested in."_

**00000000**

**Kankuro  
****vs.  
****Yoroi Akadou**

"Now, let the fourth match of the preliminary begin." instructed Hayate Gekko. On one side was the eldest sibling of the Suna genin team, Kankuro while on the other side was the final member of the team that Kabuto was a part of.

"If you're hoping to make it two-for-two for your team then I'm sorry to say that won't be happening." spoke Yoroi. "I'll make sure that I beat you and so that I can go after what I really want." A call back to the not so friendly conversation between him and his forfeiting teammate replayed in his head. _"I'll show Orochimaru that I'm more fitting to be his right hand man instead of that little lapdog, Kabuto."_ Thinking that just seem to incite Yoroi even more so.

Unfazed by the older man's words, Kankuro was acting similar to how his sister Temari had been during her match and that was acting indifferently to the whole thing. "That's pretty fun coming from someone whose team hasn't done that good so far. You had one that quit before the preliminaries even started while the other was beaten moments ago." As he said those words he removed the bundle that he had strapped over his shoulder and put it on the ground. "And after this is done your team while be batting a thousand as all of you will be eliminated."

Nothing more was said by either man as the match started. Instead of rushing in like his partner Misumi did, he started to do a short series of hand signs. The result from them was his right hand up to his elbow was covered in chakra. "I'm going to drain you of all of your energy to the point that you won't be able to move of a finger." Not giving the Suna shinobi the opportunity to create some sort of defense he rushed in and placed his chakra coated hand against his adversary's face.

Kankuro tried to break free from the man's grip but wasn't to. _"I don't know what he had planned to do with that wrapped up bundle of his but I'm not going to him the chance to try it."_ Yoroi's self gloating went on for about another minute until he realized something. _"Something's not right. None of his chakra is coming out, no matter how much I try. What's going on?"_

His confusion would be soon answered as Kankuro's face started to break apart and crumble to the ground. After most of his face came off it was revealed that underneath it all was some sort of puppet. The surprise from this discovery left him open as the faux Kankuro had two additional arms extended from his sides and wrapped around Yoroi.

"You shouldn't have rushed in like you did." That statement didn't come from the fake Kankuro but from where the bundle that had been dropped was. Slowly whatever was wrapped inside of it started to unwrapped itself and was revealed to be the real Kankuro. "All this time you didn't notice that it was my puppet Crow was masquerading as me." At the fingertips of oldest Suna shinobi were chakra strings that connected to his puppet. It's a simple trick to do when you're a puppet master, such as me."

As he spoke his puppet's grip became even tighter. It got to the point that it was starting to become difficult to breathe. "You better give up before you either die from suffocation or have most of your bones break." It took a while but finally Yoroi let out a labored surrender. Moments later, Kankuro finally allowed Crow to release the defeated opponent. Putting the wrapping back around his puppet he started to head back up the stairs to rejoin his team. _"That was easy. If this is a sign of how things are going to be then our plans will be easily accomplished."_

"Oh, I see it now." exclaimed someone that Kankuro recognized and at the same time disliked. Only a bit a ways from where the Suna team was standing was Naruto Uzumaki and his group. "You wear makeup and play around with dolls. You're a real man, aren't you?"

The boy's sarcastic remarks would cause a few of the people who heard them to laugh and that included Kankuro's own sister, Temari. _"You're so dead when I have the chance. No matter what you have trapped within you."_ declared the puppet user mentally.

**00000000**

"_The genin from Suna are truly something."_ acknowledged the Third Hokage. Like most of the onlookers there, he was amused at how the matches went. "Indeed, this year's batch of genin is remarkable. Time will only tell how the other matches will turn out."

* * *

Well, there is the end of the first part of this three part mini arc. I hope that the fights weren't overdone and/or boring. Describing fights hasn't always been my expertise so hopefully I do good enough that it would be a pain to read the next set of chapters.

Since the next two chapters are pretty much wrapped up expect for some fine-tuning they should be out sooner than previous ones. No guarantees but that's the likelihood of what's to happen.


	28. Cousins

Wasting not much time, here is the next chapter to the story. Like with the previous chapter, it'll focus on the preliminary matches. Speaking of which, I hope that how I've been doing the matches haven't been boring. Not wasting anymore time, here is the chapter. For the disclaimer, I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Chapter 28:  
Cousins

**Choji Akimichi  
****vs.  
****Kiba Inuzuka**

When the match was determined there was a bit of reaction. The main one being that it was the first match up that it had two people from the same village fighting each other which judging by how many were left it wasn't going to be the last time that would happen. Another thing was that from who were in the match it put Hinata Hyuga in conflict since Kiba was her teammate while Choji was her friend. She just hope that neither one got seriously hurt when it was all said and done.

"Well, come on then." spoke Kiba. "Show me what you got." The confidence that the Inuzuka boy was feeling was evident as there was a smug smile on his face.

"All right, you want it. You got it." replied Choji. He was confident about the situation but not to the extent as Kiba was. "Just don't regret it after I beat you."

"Like that'll happen. There's no way that I'll lose to a fat boy like you." By his feet his dog Akamaru barked in agreement. Unfortunately, during his boasting, Kiba failed to notice that he said something that you should never say to Choji. From the balcony, the Akimichi's friends and team members couldn't help but groan as they knew what was to come.

As they expected, Choji responded in typical fashion. With absolute fury in his eyes he glared at his opponent. "I'm not fat! I'm just big bone. You're going to pay for saying such a thing." The shift of attitude was finally noticed by Kiba who was now starting to regret what he said.

Once Hayate signaled for the match to start Kiba fed a food pellet to his animal partner. The result being Akamaru's fur becoming red and more ferocious. "Man Beast Clone." In place of a dog there was another Kiba only he was more bestial. Akamaru wouldn't be the only one as Kiba also became more feral.

Rushing forward the two look-alikes rushed at their opponent to deliver a dual attack. Instead of trying to get out of the way, Choji used one of his family's techniques and had both of his arms grew bigger and with his now enlarge hands grabbed the two Kibas. "Now you're going to regret calling me fat." Raising his arms higher up Choji brought them quickly to the ground. When the fists hit the ground it caused a tremor through both of his opposition that was close to breaking some of their bones.

Not wanting to endure attack like that, one of the Kibas did the only thing that he could think of. With as much force as he could he sunk his fang teeth into the large hands of Choji. The move got the reaction that he wanted as the sudden pain cause the plus sized boy to let go of him. No longer restrained, the Kiba rushed in and delivered an elbow into Choji's gut which made him unintentionally let go of the other Kiba.

"_Got to be careful."_ declared the real Kiba in his head. _"He's good at close range combat, like me. If not careful then I might not be able to get away like last time. Plus, the side effects of the energy pellets will soon start up and I'll be even more screwed."_ With all that he decided to one of the patented moves of his and Akamaru. "Fang Over Fang."

Rushing in at either end the two look-alikes began to spin at a ferocious speed. Smartly, Choji moved as fast he could out of the way and he barely managed to do so. It would only be a momentary escape as turning back around the two Kibas continued with the Fang Over Fang attack. Unable to escape for a second time, Choji was hit with the dual assault that sent him tumbling a few feet away.

Following the attack both Kibas stopped with the spinning as they examined their work. "You may as well call it proctor. There's no way he'll be getting up." Backing up with his master's words, Akamaru, still looking like Kiba smirked and nodded his head.

"Not so fast." Slowly getting back to his feet Choji stared at the two adversaries. "We're not done yet. Luckily for me I was able to do a Partial Expansion Jutsu that allowed my body to help absorb some of your attack." A second later he groaned as he doubled over a bit. "Though, I have to say that it still hurt. Don't know if I could take another one."

"Let's find out, shall we." Once again the two Kibas did a Fang Over Fang, intending for it to truly end the match. That wouldn't happen though.

Again Choji made his arms become bigger but instead of trying to grab his opposition he went for an offensive move. "Mega Palm Thrust." As the name implied he thrust one of his large palms forward and although it hurt, it hit one of the two Kibas who was doing the spin attack. It would pay off though as it stopped his attack and crumpled to the floor. To add to it he puffed into a cloud and was revealed to be the actual impersonating Akamaru who wasn't showing any sign of getting up.

Discontinuing his attack the real Kiba hurried over to his animal partner. To his relief the dog wasn't seriously injured but wouldn't be anymore help in the match. "You're going to pay for what you've did." _"That's easy said than done and I'm almost out of chakra."_ Going into his weapon's pouch he reached for something useful. _"Don't have much left in reserve but I should still be able to win if I do this just right I can still win."_ Throwing in front of him was a few smoke bombs that blocked the view with smoke.

"Piercing Fang." All the attack was one person version of the Fang Over Fang. _"It may not be as strong as when I do it with Akamaru but it should be enough to win this match."_ To Kiba's misfortune he wouldn't have the opportunity to get a clear shot as emerging from the smoke was a human size ball barreling toward him.

When the two collided it made quite an impact as both were thrown to opposite sides of the arena. Now on the ground was a fallen Kiba and on the other side was human size ball, discovered to be Choji using another family jutsu, the Human Bullet Tank. In the end the Akimichi boy 'deflated' back to his normal size. Both tried to get back up but neither one was able to get up.

"Due to both competitors no longer being able to continue, this match is declared a no contest." declared Hayate. "Therefore, both will not move onto the next round."

Soon as that announcement was made the medical staff went to check on their condition. Relief was felt by some of the spectators there that both genin would be fine, after they took the time to recover that is. Placing both of them on gurneys both of them were stretcher out to get furthered examined.

**00000000**

"Damn. That was some fight." acknowledged Naruto. His statement was silently shared by most of the other people there. "Kind of makes me wish that I was a part of it." Glimpsing to his side he saw that Hinata was still concern about what had happen. "Don't worry Hinata. Choji and Kiba are tough and something like that won't keep them down for long." His words seemed to have done the trick as Hinata gave him a small smile in thanks.

"Sorry to break up this moment." interrupted Kurenai. She was amused by the scene but needed to say what had to be said. "But I think Hinata has more pressing things to be worried about."

Confusion was evident on the genins' faces but became clearer when Kurenai pointed to the scoreboard that had the next match listed. When they saw who the names were, concern and dread came over them.

**Hinata Hyuga  
****vs.  
****Neji Hyuga**

"_Of all the matches that she could've been put in, why did it have to be Neji?"_ Naruto wasn't the only one who felt troubled by the match up as the two remaining members of her team and her other friend, Shikamaru were also concern about the match. _"This is probably one of the worst match ups for Hinata to be in."_

Again the concern returned to the Hyuga girl but for a different reason and even stronger than before. "Hinata, don't worry. Do your best and don't hold back." While Hinata appreciate Naruto's words it didn't help to lessen the worry that she had.

As for the other participant of the match, he looked completely compose. Neji probably thought that the match was a cinch. Both Hyugas made their way down the stars and unknowingly Hinata had one of her hands brush against the small water bottle that everyone failed to realize was strapped near her hip. Mostly everyone figured that she had it so that if she needed to drink during the second phase of the exam it would be right there.

The two Hyugas would soon make it to the arena floor and were standing before one another. Their expressions were seemingly polar opposites of each other. While one showed absolute confidence, the other was of apprehension.

"Before this begins, there's something you should here." informed Neji. "You should forfeit now. You'll never make a good enough shinobi." Those words hit Hinata harder than any blow could have. "You're too kind hearted, avoid confrontation is possible and agree with others without much protesting." Each word that Neji said only furthered to demoralize Hinata even more than she already was.

"I always knew of your sense of insecurity and that's one of the reasons why you should perhaps stay as a genin. But you need a team of three to take the chunin exam and even though you didn't want to, you entered because between your teammates wanted to. Am I wrong?"

"...N-No." Hinata managed to get out. "I entered so I could perhaps change myself." Though the words were a little strained to come out it still was heard by those there and had some impact to some of them.

"It is as I thought. You're an ignorant fool." insulted Neji. "Hinata, you have to realize that no one can change themselves. Someone that's a loser will always be a loser. No matter what they try to do they'll never be ever to change themselves from when they were born."

In the balcony area Naruto was becoming furious at what was going on for more than one reason. _"Neji, you son of a bitch."_

"Whether it's there ability, appearances or personally, it's those things that people are judged and are valued. Just like how you're from the main family of the Hyuga family while I'm from the branch." As continued with his tirade he activated his Byakugan. "With these eyes I'm able to see many things. One of them is that you want nothing more than to get as far away from here as possible."

"Th-That's not t-true." spoke Hinata. "I really w-wanted to..." She tried to prove her case but just couldn't get the words to come out. It didn't matters that Neji was giving her a piercing Byakugan infused glare. In fact, it only seemed to make things worse.

Not being able to hold it in anymore someone went ahead expressed their distain at what they were witnessing. "THAT'S ENOUGH!" Naruto's anger was shared by most of those there but he became the one to actually express it. The anger that he was feeling was so intense that he unknowingly had crushed the railing in his hands. "Come on, Hinata. You're better than this. Show this asshole how wrong he is."

_"Annoying little pest."_ declared Neji to himself. Naruto's sudden outburst was just another thing that was added to the list of things that had the branch member of the Hyuga family disliking the boy. Returning his attention to his scheduled opponent he saw that the frighten look on Hinata's face was gone and replaced with one of determination. _"The look in her eyes has changed."_ "Remember, I gave you the chance to forfeit. I'm not responsible for what's to happen."

"Say what you will but I won't run away." Her words would be backed up when she activated her Byakugan. Moving into the Jyuuken stance style she looked at the other Hyuga with an unwavering stare. "Now fight me, my cousin." With an unappreciative sigh, Neji performed the same stance.

Not another word was said as the two cousins fought each other with the same fighting style. They went back forth with neither seemingly getting a solid hit in. Of course that didn't mean that much since for those who fought against someone who used Jyuuken a glancing blow would cause some damage. That would all change when Neji managed to deliver a straight palm thrust to Hinata's chest. There was enough force behind the blow to force her back a few feet.

"Give up now Hinata." Neji suggested once again. "Up until now you've been barely able to keep up with my movements. It just shows how powerful that the main house really is. Continue with this match and you'll regret it."

_"He's right."_ Hinata reluctantly agreed. The pain in her chest was good reminder of how true the older Hyuga child's words were. _"I'm not able to beat him using Jyuuken. But what could I do that could probably beat him?"_ Suddenly she remembered the conversation that she had with Naruto. _"I guess that now is the time. Wouldn't you agree, Naruto?"_

Removing the cap from the bottle that was strapped to her side performed a single hand seal. From the bottle came a line of water with with Hinata grabbing one end of it. "Whip of Water." Snapping forward the rope like water hit Neji in the expose part of his arm. The result of it was a nice red welt that seemed to hurt as Neji was placed his other hand over it.

"What is that? When did you learn that jutsu?" Neji wasn't the one that wanted to know that as well as mostly everyone had no clue that the girl would use such a move.

"It's a water jutsu that I learned in secret." Hinata answered truthfully. "I thought that it would be good to something to depend on beside our family abilities." For a moment she glanced over to where Naruto was watching approvingly. "Now was just the time to show what I've learned." Once again Hinata sent the water whip at Neji who managed to avoid it. When he moved the whip hit the floor and there was enough force that it broke a part of it.

She continued to try and get Neji but he was able to avoid each attempt. _"Something's wrong."_ suspected Hinata. "I should've got him already but for some reason I'm not and it's not entirely because of the Byakugan." Luckily one of her attempts did the trick as it was able to wrap itself around one of her cousin's legs. Thinking that it was a chance to capitalize on this opportunity Hinata rushed over to him to deliver hopefully a finishing blow.

"Hinata, don't." voiced Kurenai. Apparently she realized something that her student didn't. Unfortunately it came too late as Neji was able to deliver a few finger jabs to various parts of Hinata's body.

The result being that the water whip unraveled and splashed to the ground. "W-What did you do?" Not answering with words, Neji pulled up her sleeve to reveal that throughout parts of Hinata's arm was red marks. Instantly she knew what had happen. "This was your plan from the start?"

"Precisely. With these eyes I'm able to see all of your chakra points." Remembering when he got hit in the arm by the water whip cause Neji to become further angry. "You won't be able to use anymore of your tricks now that your chakra has been blocked." He would go ahead and follow his words up with another blow, even stronger than last, to the chest that knocked her back a bit. "Hinata, this just proves the difference in our abilities that'll never change. Even now you must realize this. Forfeit and face reality."

Instead of getting up, an idea came to Hinata. _"I didn't have much time to try this jutsu out but it's the only thing that I can do. Won't be as affective since my chakra points have been blocked but I might still get to work."_ Doing another set of hand signs she placed her hand on the puddle of water that was from the whip of water. "Violent Water Wave." From the puddle the water shot straight toward a surprised Neji and hit him squarely in the chest that pushed him back a few feet. _"That wasn't enough to keep him down."_

"A surprising trick." admitted Neji. The pain in the chest from the unexpected move was felt. "But it was all for nothing. Now, I'll say it again, face reality and give up."

Hinata managed to get all the way to her feet but that was pretty much it. The affects of her chakra points being hit and the other blows she received were able to be seen as she had trouble remaining up on her feet and her breathing was a bit labored. Straining herself to that let mastered water jutsu didn't help matters. Also, the blood coming from the corner of her mouth didn't help to ease the worry that the spectators were feeling.

"You're wrong. I am facing reality. I know that even with the pain that I'm feeling it's you that's hurting." Before she could say anymore she started coughing and even more blood came out of her mouth. "You're hurting from the lost and suffering of being a branch member."

That seemed to create an even more enrage Neji to surface as he went after a barely standing Hinata. Despite Hayate saying that the match was over he continued his charge. If it wasn't for the sudden intervening of most of the jonins there was no telling what could've happen.

"Neji, it's over." informed his jonin sensei, Maito Gai. "You promise that you wouldn't let your personal issues to cloud your thinking." The boy in question appeared to ignore his sensei as he became angry at what was going on.

"Why is everyone getting involved? Is this just more special treatment for the main family?" Attention would shift from the male Hyuga to the female Hyuga as she fell to her knees and started to cough up even more blood than before.

"Hinata!" Hurrying over, Kurenai quickly examined her with what medical jutsu that she knew. Soon she would be joined by Naruto, who was concerned by his friend's well being. Not that far away were Shikamaru and Choji who were just as concerned but stayed out of the way. "Get the medics over here now!" yelled the clearly concern Kurenai.

Gratefully the medics came and rush to the unconscious Hinata out to get treated. When his friend was taken out, Naruto turned his complete attention to Neji. For his part, Neji didn't show any kind of concern of the heated glare that the blond was giving him.

"Don't bothering with the glaring. It's her fault for not doing as suggested." explained Neji for his justification for doing what he did. "Perhaps if it wasn't for the company that she kept she would've probably realized the truth a long time ago."

Knowing exactly what he meant by that and from what had happened moments ago, Naruto couldn't hold it in. In one instant he stood near where Hinata had collapsed to being inches away from wrapping his hands around Neji's throat. If it hadn't been for Lee grabbing the back of his jacket at the last moment there was no doubt that the enrage boy would've reach the Hyuga.

"Let's me go now, Lee." yelled Naruto. The spiky haired boy didn't take to kindly of being stopped. If it wasn't for the fact that the two of them were friends then things may of became physical. "This asshole deserves a beating of a lifetime."

"Maybe so Naruto but now isn't the time." Lee attempted to reason with his friend who was still struggling to get out of his grasp. "But think clearly. If you attack now you'll be disqualified and be eliminated from the Chunin Exam."

"Who gives a fuck about the exam?" Naruto's anger just seemed to intensify with every word that was said. At one point it looked as though outer parts of his eyes started to have a hint of red to them. "Neji has it coming to him and I'll make sure that he gets it."

"Then save it for the finals." exclaimed Kakashi. He decided to step in before things got out of hand. "Win your preliminary match and if possible fight him in an official match. Until then, calm down and wait."

For a moment, Naruto gave Kakashi a glare but finally conceded and made his way back up the stairs. With the situation dealt with everyone started to make their way to the balcony. "Uh…if we now could resume with the rest of the matches." reminded Hayate. "Let's see the names of the next two competitors." With that helping to divert from the confrontation that took place it got everyone to remember why they were there.

**Sakura Haruno  
****vs.  
****Ino Yamanaka**

"_So, the time has come."_ thought Ino as she saw her name. Along with her name was someone that she was close with when they were younger. How she should feel about it was unknown as she couldn't decide if she should be okay with it or have uncertainty. Unknown to her was that her scheduled opponent was feeling the same way.

"_Maybe it's covenant that I didn't have my match right now."_ Naruto admitted to himself. _"There's no telling what'll happen if I were to fight in my current emotional state."_ Putting aside those thoughts he peered down to his pink haired friend and teammate. From how she was standing it was obvious that she tentative about what was to come. _"Be careful Sakura. You're stronger but the same might be said about your opponent."_

"I never thought that the two of us would be fighting each other. Especially here." voiced Ino. She tried to sound confident but a slight waver could be detected in her voice.

"Get over it Ino." spoke Sakura. "What's done is done. Also, I'm not going to fight you over Sasuke. You're not even a contender for him." Those verbal jabs caused an instant reaction from the bleach blonde girl.

"What did you say?" shouted a now angry Ino. "Don't be getting ahead of yourself forehead girl. Did you forget who you're talking to?" All those who were watching what was going on could tell that something more was going on here that went beyond a cat fight between two teenage girls.

_"I haven't forgotten what it was like when we were younger Ino."_ thought Sakura. _"When we were kids I wanted to be like you were and that has helped to get me get here. But that was then and this is now. If I can surpass you now then everything that I have done was for nothing." _

Before the match officially began, memories of how the two were like together went through the minds of Sakura and Ino. From how their friendship began and what led it to become to what it was now. Those thoughts would soon go away as the match between two former best friends began. Sakura would be the first to go on the attack as she charged forward. While she did that she created two clones that appeared along with her.

"You're using a jutsu that's taught at the academy? Are you trying to insult me?" Ino's anger would go away as the three Sakuras came at her even faster. When one of them reached her it disappeared and was followed by the second. That was all just a distraction as smoke from the clones disappearing became camouflage for the real Sakura to punch her in the face.

"Don't take me lightly Ino." Sakura warned. "I'm not the same as I was back then. If you don't take this seriously you'll regret it." Rubbing the spot that she had been hit, Ino had to agree that was the case. Nothing was said as the two girls went at each other and wasn't holding anything back. Neither one was able to get a clear advantage as both of them were seemingly even. The fight would come to a small break as they each hit one another with a punch to the face.

_"How is this possible?_ _When did she get this strong?"_ wondered Ino to herself. She, like Sakura was trying to catch her breath. "How did you improve so quickly? There's no way that you could be even with me."

"Of course I couldn't be even with someone who's more worried about her looks and hair then improving her skills." Sakura shot back. She appeared on the outside but the same couldn't really be said about the inside. _"I have no choice. I've got to use it."_ Taking a few calming breathes she did a series of hand seals that resulted in both of her hands being covered in chakra. The move was unexpected that Ino almost forgot to get out of the way of Sakura's attack.

She didn't get out of the way completely as Sakura managed to hit her left leg. When Ino tried to get to her feet she discovered that she couldn't put any weight on the leg that was hit as a pain went throughout it. "What did you do?" Again she tried to get up but got the same results.

"I detached the muscle from your thigh bone. A good thing that I learned this jutsu before the exam started." exclaimed Sakura. "The Chakra Scalpel. Thanks to it I can use it to sever your muscles or organs without damaging your outer skin." With an exhausting sigh the chakra disappeared from both of her hands. "Unfortunately I can only maintain it for only a few minutes. It did the job though since you shouldn't be able to get back to your feet for some time."

"So you think that you've won, don't you?" Ino questioned with her head facing downward. "But you've apparently have forgotten something." She suddenly lifted her head up but that wasn't what Sakura's attention was on. It was the familiar hand sign of the blonde's family. "Mind Transfer Jutsu." Ino's body became lifelessly but that didn't matter as the unexpected move did its job as it caused Sakura to be caught.

_"Ha, I got you_" stated Ino from within her opponent's body. _"Now, if you don't mind Sakura, I think that it's time for you call it a day."_ With control of her opponent's body, the mind invading girl made the body of Sakura lift her arm up and prepared to say the words that would give her the win. "I...Sakura Haruno...would like to give-"

"Don't do it Sakura!" yelled Naruto from the balcony. Forgetting about the anger that he had about what happened in the previous match, the spiky haired boy turned his attention toward his troubled teammate. "You're better than this! Maybe it's _you_ who isn't good enough for Sasuke!"

_"What an idiot."_ uttered Ino, still in Sakura's body. _"It's pointless. There's no way that she'll-"_ That slight boast was stopped when she felt an unusual sensation.

_"Naruto can be so annoying."_ said someone inside of the pink haired girl's head and it wasn't Ino. _"He's right though. I can't lose like this."_ Soon a mental struggle began and in the end it appeared as though Sakura came out on the winning end as Ino had no choice but to return to her body.

"How did you do that?" gasped an exhausted Ino. "There's no way that you could've escape from my mind jutsu."

"What can I say?" replied an equally tired Sakura. "I had to get stronger. Especially with whom I have as teammates."

Obviously both girl didn't have much left and the end of the match was seemingly was near. Rushing at one another again, the two of them went at each other. With the last bit of strength that they had left they hit each other in the face at the same time. The force behind the hits knocked both of them back and to the ground.

Going over, the proctor, Hayate Gekko checked on both Sakura and Ino. After doing so, he announced his decision. "Both competitors are unable to continue. This match is a double knockout."

That announcement made Kakashi and Asuma, the sensei of the two girls went in and picked both of them up and gently placed them down on the balcony. "Are they going to be all right?" asked Shikamaru. He wasn't the only one that wanted to know as the others wanted to know as well.

"They're fine." reassured Kakashi. "Both of them will be out for a while but they'll be okay."

"These two are really something." muttered Asuma. "The two of them went all out didn't they?"

"I agree." added the one eyed jonin. _"Though I didn't have any real concern about how Sasuke and Naruto would do here but I wasn't sure about Sakura."_ "Apparently I made the right move by allowing the three of them enter the Chunin Exam."

* * *

And with that ends the second part of this small mini arc. As with before, I hope that you enjoyed how the matches were discribed since doing battles hasn't always been my strong point.

You may of noticed that some of the fights had similarities as the actual series. I did it somewhat intentionally because the setting up for them were done nicely that I decided to not really change it.

I may get some negativity for having Hinata using water jutsus during her fight but I decided to go with for two reasons. One, I didn't want to simply rehase the match they had in the actual series and two, I wanted to make her a stronger character. Probably also a little surprising that it was her to be the first one to work with elemental type jutsus.

Expect to see the next chapter and concluding chapter of this arc to be out sometime this week. So until then, see ya.


	29. Bloodlust

Here you go, readers. This is the third and final part of the preliminary matches of the Chunin Exam. Not going to waste time by saying things in the author notes, so I'll just do the disclaimer. I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Chapter 29:  
Bloodlust

"Well, that was interesting." muttered Kankuro in an unconvincing manner. "At least it was entertaining for a while." Glancing over to his teammates/siblings he saw that Temari could careless what had happen. She probably thought that neither girl was a challenge compared to her. Gaara on the other hand, that was a different story.

Though he didn't try to show it, Kankuro could see that his younger brother was slightly trembling in eagerness. Knowing what that meant the puppet user became slightly nervous. _"Oh no, it's started. The match between the Hyugas must have riled him up. I have to pity whoever is that faces him. Thankfully I don't worry about having to fight him."_

**00000000**

Slowly, Sakura's eyes opened and all that could be seen was blurry images. _"Where am I?"_ Blinking her eyes it started to become clearer and started to recognize where she was.

"So you're awake." Looking to her side Sakura saw Ino, who by her appearance was just as beat up as she felt. "Are match has ended." To help confirm the Yamanaka girl's words, some of the other genin were already rooting and cheering as the next match was being declared.

"Does that mean that…I lost?" Sakura asked. Try as she might she wasn't able to hide the sadness that she was feeling. _"Even after how hard I tried."_

"Please, I'm the one who wants to be sad." Ino retorted who was just as sad about the match results. "Are match ended in a tie. Neither one of us advanced." That verification helped to lessen Sakura's disappointment somewhat as a tie meant that she didn't exactly lose.

"Have to admit though that you've grown to become an amazing young lady." Sakura couldn't help but happily smile in thanks. "However, don't think that the same thing will happen the next time that we fight. You won't come out of it by just being knocked out."

"The same goes for me." responded Sakura. Although neither of them said it, the friendship that the two of them had when they were younger was slowly starting to be re-established.

"Don't think that means that I'll be handing Sasuke over to you." As with previous occasions, both Ino and Sakura sent each other heated glares. Apparently there were going to be bumps in the road to patch up their friendship.

**00000000**

**TenTen  
****vs.  
****Shikamaru Nara**

"This is a drag. Why do I have to be one of the people that have to fight a girl?" muttered Shikamaru. Though his comments were intended to be offensive, his picked opponent, TenTen didn't take kindly to them.

"Now what's that suppose to mean? You think that you're too good to fight a girl?" The irritation that the weapon mistress was feeling was showing a little as her grip on the kunai that she already had out tightened a bit more.

"No, that's not it. It's just not policy to fight a woman." A moment later, Shikamaru took a quick step back as the kunai that TenTen had been holding was thrown right where he had previously stood. "Of course, that doesn't mean that I'm willing to stand back and allow you to beat me." He may have sounded confident his thoughts were a different story for the young shadow user. _"Better watch what I say. If I don't I could end up resembling a pincushion."_

As soon as the match was starting it resembled a version of target practice as TenTen attempted to hit her opposition with the many weapons that she had on her only for Shikamaru managing to narrowly avoid them. That didn't mean that he got evaded all of them as there was the occasional kunai or shuriken that was able to hit him. "I'll admit it. I'm impress you're avoided my throws. The only others who can do that from our age group is my two teammates and Naruto. That isn't something to take lightly. "

"Thanks for the compliment but it's not fair to be compared to those three energetic freaks." From the balcony you could hear the offended shouts from a certain spiky blonde. As for TenTen, she couldn't help but smirk at the reaction that came from her slightly younger friend. "Besides, I don't need to dodge anymore since I'm going to end this." That being said, Shikamaru performed his family's trademark ability as his shadow stretched in the direction of where his opponent was.

Knowing what he was trying to do, TenTen moved out of the way and continued to do so when the shadow continued to come. This went on for a while until the shadow finally stopped stretching. "Sorry but that won't work on me. Not when I stay out of your shadow's reach." The confidence that bun haired girl was feeling would be short live as she suddenly became stiff. "What? How did you? You're..."

"That's where you're wrong." Shikamaru disputed. "Maybe you should to your right." Doing as suggested, TenTen looked from the corner of his eye and saw that there was another part of Shikamaru's shadow that connected with her own. How it got to her while the other did became clear as it used the shadows that came from the weapons that she had thrown earlier to make a chain of sorts.

"Well, you got me trapped in your shadow but what do you plan to do next?" TenTen continued to struggle only for it to be futile. "Unless you're planning on boring me to death you won't win. Sooner or later you'll run out of chakra and when you do I'll end this match."

Not really showing any real concern, Shikamaru merely shrugged his shoulders. "Maybe you're right. Perhaps I should just lay back and wait for the match to be over." Dropping backward he started to fall to the ground. Still connected by their shadows, TenTen mimic his movements.

While Shikamaru hit the ground he managed to soften his fall. However, when TenTen went down the back of her head hit one of her ball-and-chain weapons. Not expecting it and the force behind it resulted in her being unconscious.

"Winner of the match, as a result of a knockout: Shikamaru Nara." When announced the boy release his shadow hold on the girl who was slowly starting to regain conscious but still out of it. Even though he muttered something about it being troublesome, Shikamaru went over and helped her up the stairs and to her team.

**00000000**

"That was a good match that you had Shikamaru." acknowledged Naruto. He had to wait to say it as the shadow user had to get an earful from Ino for doing such a 'lackluster' performance in his match. "You're definitely one of the craftiest people in Konoha. And I don't mean as a shinobi either."

"Thanks. But you should probably be concern when you have your match." In a roundabout way Shikamaru was reminding the spiky haired demon host that there were only four competitors that had let to fight and they were Lee, Dosu, Gaara and Naruto himself. The chances of him being matched up against the other demon host were high. "I'm sure that I don't have to tell you what may happen if you two were to fight now."

Nodding his head, Naruto knew what his friend was trying to say. _"If Gaara and I were to fight now there's no telling what'll happen. I don't even know if I would even survive let alone be victorious." _"But we can't forget about Lee and that guy from Oto. Lee's a handful on his own and something about the guy in bandages that doesn't sit well with me. It's up to the luck of the draw to decide what happens."

It wouldn't take long for them to find out what was next as the second to last match of the preliminaries was determined. When the names were shown Naruto couldn't help but smile. _"At least I don't have to wait any longer." _Walking to the steps he locked his eyes with Neji. While Naruto gave him a glare, the Hyuga gave him a smug smirk. That just seemed to reignite the anger that the Uzumaki boy had for the branch member.

**Naruto Uzumaki  
****vs.  
****Dosu Kinuta**

No humor was within Naruto's eyes as he stared at his opposition. "Let's end this quickly. I've got more important things to do." Whether his words were meant to be intentional or not they didn't set well with the man in front of him. Actually, it only furthered angered the Oto shinobi who seemed to be upset about something already.

"Keep telling yourself that. Because you're going to pay for what you did?" retorted Dosu. That confused all those who heard what was said but no one was more confused than Naruto.

"Come again? What have I done to you? Are you talking about what went on in the forest?" guessed Naruto. That was the only reason that he could come up with. "If so then I don't know why you're upset with me. I was out of it at that time. Sasuke was the one who did the damage. Take your anger up with him." For reasons that couldn't be explained, Naruto's words seemed to only anger Dosu even more than he had been before, which is saying something.

"I'm not talking about that!" With the hatred clearly seen in his left eye he pointed to the part of his face that was completely covered in bandages. "I'm talking about this! This happened because of you."

Those words only confused Naruto even more than he already was. _"What up with this guy?"_ The whole situation was starting to really get on the blonde's last nerve. "Man, what your deal? How could I have done anything to you when I haven't even seen before the exams started?"

"You may say that." exclaimed Dosu in a quieter voice so that only the two of them could hear. "But can you say the same for your other self?" After a bit of confusion at what that meant by that, Naruto got an idea what he meant as his eyes widened in shock. Before any kind of confirmation could be made, Hayate Gekko signaled for the match to start.

Wanting to get on a good start, Naruto went to create a shadow clone. But when he tried nothing happen. _"What the hell? What's going on?"_ Naruto wouldn't have the opportunity to think about it any further as Dosu came toward him and swung his right arm at him. He was able to avoid the hit but realize what was to come because he got out of the way.

As with others, his equilibrium was messed with to the point that his vision blurred and he fell to a knee. "Ah, did that hurt?" questioned Dosu in fake concern. "Good. That's just a small taste of what you did to me. I promise that there will be more of before it's over." While the Oto shinobi was giving his menacing promise Naruto was trying to figure things out.

_"What's going on? Usually doing the shadow clone jutsu would be a piece of cake for me. Why am I having trouble now?"_ He tried to get himself back up but found it difficult. That sound base attack had obviously done a bit of damage to him. _"Why am I having trouble here? I should be doing better than this."_

_**"It's because of what that bastard did to you in the forest."**_ informed his demonic tenant, Kyuubi. _**"Haven't you realized it yet? When you fought Orochimaru he placed a seal on top of the one that binds me to your despicable human body. It's affecting your already pathetic chakra control to point that you can barely channel it to do a jutsu."**_ From the way the fox spirit gave the explanation it wasn't hard to see that he wasn't happy about the situation as well.

_"Great. Thanks for telling me now of all times. Ever thought about informing me of this before the preliminaries started?"_ Naruto was unable to mentally say anything else as he had to avoid the second wave of Dosu's attack. This time he made sure to stay as clear as possible from the right arm that had the gauntlet attached to it. However, he would still get hit by the occasionally attack. That was mostly due to still feeling the affects of the sound wave that he was hit with earlier.

_**"Don't get angry at me boy. **__**It's your fault that the other seal was put on you. If you just did as I said and stayed away from that snake man than this would never have happen."**_ There wasn't any retort from Naruto as he knew that in a warped way the fox was right. _**"Even though I would enjoy seeing you beaten within an inch of your pathetic life, it would only put my existence at risk. I may not be able to remove this unwelcome seal; I can alter it enough that it won't hinder you that much. But it'll take some time to do so."**_

_"I guess I don't have any other choice but depend on you."_ Back flipping away from another one of Dosu's attempts to use his gauntlet on him Naruto took a moment to catch his breath. _"Just make sure that you do your part or we're both being in deep shit."_ Coming to the realization that close range fighting wasn't doing the job, Naruto reached into his pouch and pulled out some shurikens. Throwing them he had hoped that they would hit their target. Unfortunately they were blocked when Dosu used his gauntlet as a shield of sort.

**00000000**

"_Something's wrong. Naruto's better than best."_ recognized Shikamaru. He wasn't the only one who saw it as most of the other genin and some of the senseis who knew him realize that the blond wasn't fighting like he usually did. _"Does it have something to do with what happened in the forest?"_

Looking over to the balcony on the other side of the room you could clearly see Gaara. As the match was going on there wasn't the slightest bit of change of expression in the red head's face. That was of course only on the outside. There was no telling what was going on in that boy's head. _"Whatever is going on Naruto, you better figure out what to do before it's too late."_

**00000000**

"Come on. You can do better than that, Naruto!" yelled Sakura. So focus on his match, Naruto could only give a side glance in annoyance to his pink haired comrade. Though she said that she couldn't help but be a little concern about how the match was going.

Secretly, a somewhat similar thinking was going through Kakashi Hatake's head. _"Is that as good as you are, Naruto? Why don't you use that secret that you have kept hidden? Are you worry about it being discovered or is there another reason?"_

**00000000**

"Now, this is really pathetic." exclaimed a disappointed Dosu. "This isn't even worth it if you don't fight me in your true self." What he was saying was louder than before and all of those who heard was said couldn't help but be confuse by what was meant by that. "Why not use it now? Maybe then you'll have a chance against me."

_"Okay. He obviously knows about me being Fox."_ Naruto realized. _"But how? How could he possibly have known about that?"_ Putting those questions at the back of his mind, he focused on the match before him. Going into his pouch he took out two kunais. He tossed them at the same time but they went in different directions. One went to the right and would completely miss while the other was straight on course.

Ignoring the one that was already going to miss him, Dosu focused on the one that was coming toward him. Leaping back he was able to avoid the kunai that hit just where he was standing seconds ago. "Becoming desperate I see. You're aim has started to become erratic. You'll never manage to hit me with throws like those."

Instead of coming up with a retort of some kind, Naruto merely allowed a fox like smile. "Now, who said I was trying to hit you?" The confusion that came from what was said only continued as suddenly an explosion happen by the wall that Dosu had been standing by. When the dust had cleared it was discovered that the lower half of the Oto shinobi's body had been caught in the ruble that came from the explosion.

_**"Weakling."**_ spoke Kyuubi for the first time in quite a while. _**"I've done my part. You should be able to do use your chakra easier than earlier."**_ Naruto couldn't help but let out a small sigh of relief when he heard that. _**"It's only temporary though. You'll have to ask that old fossil that you live with to remove the seal permanently."**_

_"That's good enough. I know just the way to end this. Also, it gives me the opportunity to try out something that I've wanted to use for quite sometime."_ Looking over to where Dosu was he saw that he was able to free himself from the ruble but it was clear that his legs were injured to the point that he couldn't get around all that quickly. Unable to help himself, Naruto smiled at his opponent's present condition.

"I think that now is the time to end this. Also, I'll be able to get you back for that sound attack that you did to me earlier." Putting his hands together he gathered a good amount of chakra in between them. When the necessary amount was collected he thrust his hands forward in the direction of where his Dosu was. "Flash Flare." What came next was the jutsu creating a large explosion of light. The result was everyone that was within range of it to be blinded but no one more than Dosu who had his only visible eye closed while swinging his arms wildly.

"Shadow Clone Jutsu." Performing what had becoming somewhat of a trademark of his, four clones appeared beside the original. The five of them surrounded Dosu who, like the others, was starting to regain their sight. "Here's something that I came up with, thanks to my friend Lee." Following a wordless command four of the five Narutos rushed in and delivered a serious of kicks, each one of them causing his opponent higher and higher into the air. After the four did their attacks, the fifth and final one jumped off the back of one of the look-alikes.

When he was at the same height as the Oto shinobi he delivered an axe kick to the back of Dosu's neck. The force of the blow helped to drive Dosu back to the ground. While Naruto landed gently to the ground the same couldn't be said for Dosu as he crashed hard to the ground and wasn't showing any sign of getting back up. "Introducing the Uzumaki Barrage."

"Winner of the match: Naruto Uzumaki." When that announcement was made, Naruto couldn't help but let out an exhausting sigh. Glad that it that the match was over. Turning around he started to go to the stairs that would lead him back to the balcony but stopped when someone called out to him.

"This isn't over yet." Glancing over his shoulder, Naruto saw that Dosu was getting back up, rather shakily, to his feet. As he was getting up the bandages that had been wrapped around most of his face fell to the floor. Apparently they had been ripped apart thanks to being driven into the ground by the Uzumaki Barrage.

With them now gone it was revealed that they had been hiding four large scars that went across the formerly concealed part of his face. The scars looked pretty nasty looking but there were many ways that they could've come from. But to Naruto, he immediately knew how he got them and finally realized why he was so vengeful towards him. _"It's him. It's the same guy from before."_

Recognizing the person immediately made Naruto think back to when a group of what appeared to be bandits that was led by a person in a shroud, who would later be discovered to be Kabuto Yakushi. They had held the Hokage hostage and would only release him if they were given the Forbidden Scroll.

Long story short, he became Fox and managed to rescue the Hokage and keep the scroll from being taken. While the thieves managed escape, he remembered that he was able to claw one of them in the face. Putting two and two together, it became clear that Dosu and that person were one and the same.

"You may have won the match but you're still going to lose. Lose your life!" Rushing forward he tried to swing his right arm at me with a kunai in hand. Hoping that one of two things would happen. Either him stabbing the blonde with the kunai or getting close enough so he could use his gauntlet to send a powerful sound wave that would make the boy's brain explode.

Neither of those things would happen as when Dosu was within range, Naruto grabbed his arm and throwing him over his shoulder and to the ground. The position that the two of them were in was Dosu flat on the ground with Naruto holding him down by twisting his arm. "You should probably do the smart thing and stop." advice Naruto. "Otherwise, you might regret it."

"Don't patronize me!" spat the nearly unhinged Dosu. "After what you've done to me I'll never stop until I get my revenge on you. When I'm done with you, you'll be worst shape that Hyuga bitch friend of yours."

"I don't know what you're talking about." questioned Naruto in fake confusion. He didn't want to say something that could possibly help reveal that he and Fox were one and the same. "Now, as for that remark that you made about Hinata and you not stopping until you get your 'revenge'. Here's my response."

Putting the arm that he was holding, Naruto stood straight up. Without any sign of remorse he drove his foot onto Dosu's arm. There was enough force behind it that it crushed the gauntlet and breaking his arm in the process. "Get a life."

No longer having anything to say or do there, Naruto started to make his way back up the stairs, ignoring the screams that were coming from Dosu as the medics stretched him out. With the fight being over the adrenaline wore off and exhaustion took its place. _"I'll get that bastard Orochimaru back for this."_ Instinctively he placed his hand over the seal that helped to contain the Kyuubi for a moment before dropping his hand back down.

"_**Like you could do anything to him."**_ challenged the fox spirit. _**"At your present level someone like him would most likely kill you without batting an eye."**_

Though it pained him to do so, Naruto knew that the fox was telling him the truth. _"Then I guess I'll just have to get stronger. Also, I want to say…thanks. I wouldn't have gotten through that match without your help. Even if you did it to keep yourself alive, I still appreciate it."_ There wasn't any response but a faint growl could be heard and in a way that was as much as a 'you're welcome' that he was going to get.

Once he reached the top of the stairs he finally realized that there were a few stares aimed towards him. Not wanting any unwanted drawn toward him he tried to shift it away. "Ha, ha. I guess I let myself get carried away." Scratching the back of his head and with a smile on his face Naruto made his way to Sakura and Kakashi. It was only when he heard the proctor Hayate Gekko's words did he stop.

"Now, let us get to the final match of the preliminaries. So, Gaara and Rock Lee please come down here." Gaara wouldn't take long as one moment he was standing with his time and the next he was on the floor and was annoyed at all of the waiting he had to do.

"_Fuck. I forgot that Lee would go against Gaara."_ Dropping the carefree smile that Naruto had he glanced toward Lee who was eager to be finally having a match. _"There's no way that I could get him to forfeit. The least I can do is to give him fair warning."_ "Lee, listen. There's something I need to tell you."

"Can this wait Naruto?" asked Lee. "I must mentally prepare myself for my match. I'm sure that it'll be quite exhilarating."

"_It won't be if Gaara allows that demon sealed inside of him to become the dominate personality."_ the spiky blond mentally told himself. "Then listen while you 'get ready'. Do not, I repeat, do not take your opponent likely." From Naruto's tone he was being deadly serious. Caught somewhat off guard at his friend's uncommon attitude caused Lee to turn his attention toward him.

"Gaara is a more dangerous than you know. You still want to fight and I'm not going to stop you. But if you have the chance to end it quickly then do it. You may have beaten Sasuke but he's on a different level." Glancing to the side he looked over to Lee's sensei and mentor, Maito Gai. "And deep down I think that you think the same." All that was given as a response was Gai's usual energetic eyes becoming more somber.

"In other words, don't hold back. Give him everything you got and I mean everything." The meaning behind Naruto's words got through to Lee as he nodded his head. With that he leapt over the railing and down to the fighting stage. _"Don't be hesitant Lee. If you do you may pay the ultimate price."_

**00000000**

**Gaara  
****vs.  
****Rock Lee**

"Sorry for making you wait." said Lee as he walked to the center of the fighting stage. "To have a match against you at this time is something that I've been looking forward. I couldn't be anymore happier." Gaara didn't say anything. The only thing that came from him was the same stoic expression that he was accustomed to having.

Before the match could even officially begin the cork for Gaara's gourd burst open and was caught by Lee. "In a hurry, aren't you?" Again there wasn't any reaction from Gaara. Even when the proctor signaled for the match to start he showed no reaction. _"Something is off about this guy. Maybe it has something to do with why Naruto was so concern. If that's the case I have to at least test him."_

Rushing in, Lee tried to attack with a side kick. His attack would be blocked as the sand that was inside of Gaara's gourd. Moving a set distance away he tried to attack from various sides but each attempt was blocked by the sand. All the while, Gaara remained in the same position that he had been in since before the match even started.

**00000000**

"Shit. This was what I was worried about." voiced Naruto. Wanting to have his complete focus on the match that was going on he got away he placed himself away from everyone else. "None of Lee's attacks are getting through. If he was able to use ninjutsu or genjutsu he could have a better chance of winning."

"But he can't. Taijutsu is all that Lee is able to do." reminded Shikamaru. Cautiously he was able to get close to the serious blond. Maybe knowing about his friend being Fox was the reason why Naruto didn't snap at the boy to give him some space. "Unless he's able to get pass Gaara's sand it'll be impossible for him to win."

"Perhaps you should think about telling your friend to give up." advised a new voice. Walking over to the two was Temari. They didn't say anything but the two Konoha shinobi were a little cautious when the girl from Suna came over. "None of your friend's attacks will get through Gaara's sand. Even without willing it the sand will protect him. That's why he hasn't even a starch in his entire life."

"Yeah, we already got info about your brother." informed Shikamaru. "But don't think that this match is already decided. Don't be surprise that Lee has a trick or two under his sleeve."

"_Hopefully he'll have the chance to use those tricks before it's too late."_ Naruto thought to himself. It was about that time that he realized that Temari had gotten closer to him than he preferred. "Do you mind? You're a little closer to me than my liking."

"Are you saying that you rather have me standing away from you?" She would then give the bond haired boy a somewhat sultry look. "What do you say that after this is over we do something?" Leaning closer Temari whispered the next part in his ear. "If so can it be with you being Fox?"

"_Oh, isn't this great? I got my own version of a fan girl. Or rather Fox has a fan girl."_ From the back of his subconscious the sound of snide laughter could be heard. Clearly Kyuubi was finding the situation amusing.

**00000000**

Back at the match, the same thing was going on as before. All of Lee's attack continued to be blocked by the sand and all the while Gaara didn't move a muscle. The look on his face seemed to be one of annoyance and at the same time boredom from the red haired Suna shinobi. Avoiding another attempted swipe of the sand, Lee tried to regain his composure while trying to think of what to do next. _"That sand. It's almost as though it's alive."_

"Lee!" shouted Gai that could be heard clearly from everyone in the room. "Take them off." Lee seemed to know what his sensei was referring to right away. With a happy smile he left his pant legs up to revealed that wrapped around each of his ankles were leg weights.

Unfastening the weights Lee let out a cheerful shout as he stood back up. "Now I'm able to move around more freely than before." Most everyone there thought that losing a few pounds of weight wouldn't make much of a difference but that would change at what happen next. Throwing the weights behind him they crashed to the ground with enough force that it shook the ground.

Shock was evident on most of the spectators as they didn't expect something like that to happen. With a go ahead from Gai, Lee went on the move. Unlike earlier the green clad Konoha shinobi was moving faster that it was hard to keep track. It was about that time that Gaara had so any real interest in the match. Lee would show himself as he reappeared behind his opponent. Throwing a punch he was close to hitting him in the face but was stopped by the sand at the last possible moment.

Moving again, Lee tried to hit Gaara from various areas only for the sand getting in the way. However, with each hit he was slowly getting more in before the sand stopped him. Then something happened that none of those from Suna thought that they would never see actually happen. With an axe kick from above, Lee landed a clean hit to Gaara's head.

No time for gloating as Lee was on the move again, only this time going even faster than before. His speed had increased so much that it could hardly be followed and the defensive sand of Gaara's couldn't even keep up with him. It got to the point that green clad shinobi was able to get a few more hits in. There wouldn't be any gloating this time as well but for a different reason.

Breaking away from Gaara's face was pieces of sand and revealed underneath was undamaged skin. _"He had a protective layer of sand covering him for protection?"_ Lee's confusion would be replaced by concern as the face of the once expressionless Gaara became one of sadistic glee. _"What in the world is he?"_

**00000000**

"_This isn't good." _When that uneasy look came over Gaara's face a uncomfortable feeling of intent started to come over the whole area. Out of everyone there the team from Suna was more than nervous as they were worried. _"This is a different Gaara than earlier. It's a more dangerous one." _Looking to her side, Temari saw that the other demon host, Naruto Uzumaki was on edge._ "He feels it. With a demon inside him as well he must realize what's happening. He realizes that this Gaara isn't the same one as before. It's one that has been slowly coming to the surface since the exam has started."_ "It'll be the end of your friend if he gets a hold of him now."

Naruto paid her no mind as he already knew that. _"Be careful Lee. Something tells me that this match has suddenly taking a turn. If you not watch it you may end up costing you dearly". _Despite the concern about how things were going, a confident smile came over the face of Lee.

Slowly he started to unroll some of the bandages that he had on his arms. "He's going to use the move from earlier?" Remembering back to just before the Chunin Exam began, when Lee and Sasuke had their little match the bowl haircut boy was about to do a move that started out the same way but was stopped before he could complete it. The same thing wouldn't happen here.

**00000000**

Running around his opponent, Lee put his move in motion. "Front Lotus." Crouching down before the red head he used a kick that sent Gaara into the air. Following him, Lee leapt into the air and was behind Gaara. Once in position he used the bandages that were unwrapped earlier to wrap up his opponent. Grabbing him in a bear hug he starts to fall back to the ground, head first. As they fell they were spinning in rapid succession. When they hit the ground it shook the place, which helped to show how much force was behind the attack.

Once everything had settle down the result of the attack was seen as laying in a crater was Gaara with an exhausted Lee not that far away. Victory probably would be given if Gaara didn't suddenly become nothing more than a pile of sand. The whereabouts of were the missing boy could've went was soon discovered as he appeared behind Lee. Right behind the Suna boy was a large wave of sand that went straight for him.

What followed was Lee having to continually move to avoid the constant attacks from the sand. That proved difficult as his movements were sluggish. It just helped to prove that what Gai saying that the Lotus technique was a 'double-edged sword' move. Just as it seemed like the end was near, the speed that Lee once had returned to him.

"This is the end for you." exclaimed Gaara. He seemingly was more than ready to put an end to not only the match but also his life.

"I'll agree. Whatever happens this will end it." Crossing his arms in front of his face, Lee started to prepare himself for his final attack. _"Neji…Sasuke…Naruto. There's no way that I'm going to be the only one to lose here."_ With the increase of chakra from opening another gate the skin on Lee turned red and the chakra could be felt pouring out from his body. In speed that was powerful that it broke apart of the ground with each step.

He was so fast that he could hardly be seen, which proved costly for Gaara as he was again kicked up into the air. What happened next was Lee banging Gaara around like a pinball. Unfortunately, the 'double-edged sword' description of the Lotus became more evident as the strain of it was affecting Lee to the point that it seemed like his body was being torn apart. It would seem to be effective though as the constant hitting around prevented Gaara's sand from shielding him.

With the last bit of strength that Lee could use he drove Gaara into the ground in tremendous force. An eerie calm came over the area as everyone wondered what was going to happen. When the dust cleared they saw Lee on his hands and knees, spent that he couldn't get up. As for Gaara, he looked more wrecked than he ever has been before.

Even in his weaken Gaara managed to have some of his sand wrap itself around Lee's left arm and leg. For some of the people there watching, they knew what was going to happen. "Desert Coffin." What followed was the sand crushing the arm and leg. The pain had to be immense as Lee let out a agonizing scream. There was no doubt in anybody that the match was as good as done but Gaara felt differently as he had more of his sand going for the defenseless Lee.

**00000000**

"Damn it. That's enough." Not caring what kind of consequences may happen because of it, Naruto was about to go over the railing and spot Gaara. Even if it meant becoming Fox in front of everyone watching it didn't matter. "He's got to be stopped and I'm willing to give it a try."

Before he could follow those words up someone else jumped in and intervened. Breaking through the sand was Lee's jonin sensei/mentor, Maito Gai. After a stare down and a few words Gaara seemingly became bored and started to leave. It was about that time that Hayate Gekko announced that Gaara was the winner of the match due to Gai interfering but no one paid attention.

The medical staff once again made their presence known as they quickly made their way to the badly beaten and unconscious Lee. Not far behind were his teammate, TenTen and following behind was his friend, Naruto. As they made their way, Naruto slowly down and glared toward Gaara who was sending him a look that lacked any remorse for what he did. _"I had a feeling that he would win but to go this far with Lee. I wonder between him and the demon inside him who the real monster is."_

Forgetting about him, Naruto continued to make his way to where the medics were quickly treating Lee. As they stretched his friend out he caught bits and pieces of what one of the medics were telling Gai and TenTen. Luckily Lee was still breathing, though his hand and leg was shattered as well as the muscles in his body torn up. However, the worse had to be when it was said that his injuries were so serious that Lee would never be a shinobi again.

When hearing that it cause a difference of reactions. Gai was shocked and sadden. TenTen, who was Lee's teammate and friend couldn't help but let a few tears to come. As for Naruto, it upset him but more importantly it angered him. Once again he glared over to Gaara who had returned with his team. _"He wasn't trying to just win a match. He would've killed Lee if Gai hadn't interfered. Someone has to stop him before something like this happens again. But am I able to be that person to do so?"_

**00000000**

What followed was the explanation of what the third and final phase of the Chunin Exam was going to be. Simply, it was going to be a tournament that would take place in one month. To decide the pairings for the matches a simple drawing was done and when it was all said and the done the matches were determined. The matches were:

Match 1:  
**Naruto Uzumaki vs. Neji Hyuga**

Match 2:  
**Gaara vs. Sasuke Uchiha**

Match 3:  
**Kankuro vs. Shino Aburame**

Match 4:  
**Temari vs. Shikamaru Nara**

"_I got Neji Hyuga right at the start and possibly Gaara in the next round. I wouldn't want it any other way."_ Looking over to his first opponent, Naruto saw that Neji was pleased with the drawing. _"Probably thinks that our match will be an easy victory. I don't think so. I'll make sure that Neji and everyone else will be surprise at what I'm capable of."_

* * *

Well, that's the end to the preliminary matches arc to my story. Like I mentioned in the two previous chapters, I hope none of you were bored by how the matches were done. Also wanted to do something with the Dosu character that would in a way touch upon something that happen in one of the early characters of this story. If you're a fan of the series, which is the likely case, you probably have noticed that the Gaara vs. Lee match was somewhat like the one in the actual series. Honestly, I had trouble coming up with anything that could've top the one from the manga/anime.

Another thing you may of noticed since the part 1 was that even though the matches were mostly different, those who won/advance were the same. Honestly, I didn't really want to change that because I didn't feel like it needed to be altered. Doesn't mean there won't be any changes but you'll just have to wait and see what I actually do. Not sure when the next chapter will be out but it'll likely to be out within the month.


	30. Train

I promised to have the next chapter out sometime near the end of the month and here it is. By the title you can somewhat guess what the chapter is going to be about and hopefully that doesn't make you think about skipping it. Of course, as for the disclaimer, I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Chapter 30:  
Train

"How pitiful." In a large, one person hospital room was a group of ANBU Black Ops on the ground, dead. The one response was what appeared to be a genin of Konoha was in fact an agent for Oto, Kabuto Yakushi. "I thought that they would at least give me a bit of a challenge." Why he was there, it was because of the person in the only bed in the room. That person was the unconscious Sasuke Uchiha.

"How unfortunate you are." Walking over Kabuto stood at the side of Sasuke's bed. "You have caught the eye of Orochimaru and there's no way to escape it." Reaching into one of his shirt pockets he pulled out a scalpel. Whatever he planned to do with it would be left unanswered as it was snatched from his hand. "Well done. Caught off guard like that, that's what I would expect from you, Kakashi Hatake."

Indeed the person who intervened was the copycat shinobi, Kakashi. "Who are you? You're not the run of the mill genin. Do you have some type of involvement with Orochimaru?"

"What if I do?" Kabuto didn't show any sign of concern that he was discovered. Actually, he sounded confided. "What do you plan on doing about it?"

"Just shut up and answer the question." Kakashi demanded. _"To be able to kill the ANBU group he isn't some slouch. Better be careful."_ "Tell me what Orochimaru has planned and what does that do with Sasuke?"

"Don't worry. Everything will be revealed in time. So just wait and see." Before anything could be done one of the thought to be dead ANBU guards tried to escape but he was stopped by a shadow clone of Kakashi. That would only be a diversion though as another ANBU guard got up and smashed through the window. Removing the mask it was revealed to be Kabuto. After making his successful escape the one ANBU and the faux Kabuto collapsed to the ground. Checking both of their vitals it was determined that both of them were dead.

"_He used a jutsu to control the bodies of two of the dead ANBU while he pretended to be one of them."_ figured Kakashi. _"He went so far as to even temporarily stopping his own heart. To have someone of that still on Orochimaru's side I've a feeling that I have my work cut out for me."_

**00000000**

"Do you mind repeating that?" Jiraiya looked at the boy with an interested stare. "I think that I didn't hear you correctly."

"I asked for you to train me." repeated Naruto. He was being completely serious with his request. "I've got Neji Hyuga in the first match and as much as I hate to admit it but the chances of me beating him at my present level is very unlikely." His words seemed to leave a bad taste in the boy's mouth as he stuck his tongue out. "You've taught me a few things and I appreciate it. However, I need further training."

"Have you thought this through?" questioned Jiraiya. "You do know that what you're asking isn't going to come easy?"

"Of course I know. Nothing's worth getting without working for it." The words were a simple truth and an example of it was Rock Lee. "Honestly, if I became Fox I would have more of an advantage but that's not an option." With a determined expression Naruto looked over to his godfather. "To protect those I care for I need to get stronger. So, are you going to help me or do I have to do it on my own?"

"_He's so much like his parents that it amazes me every time."_ "I guess I don't have any other choice. I'll give you a crash course for the next month." Naruto couldn't help but to show his appreciation at hearing that. "But don't think that I'll go easy on you. I'll work you to the bone for the next four weeks." The blond merely nodded his head, though he couldn't help but be a little worried.

**00000000**

Days Later…

"That was pathetic." True to his word, Jiraiya held nothing back. "Do it again." With a haggard breath Naruto did as he was told.

"Shadow Clone Jutsu." Puffs of smoke came and two clones appeared. Nothing was said as Naruto and his two look-alikes went at the older man. It wouldn't take long for the fight to end as both clones were destroyed and the original collapsing in exhausting.

"Get up." was all that Jiraiya said. There wasn't any of the usual kindness in his voice as there was nothing but commanding. "You can do better than this. That seal that was placed on your already existing seal has been removed so you can't use it as an excuse. Now get up and try it again and we'll continue until you're able to land a clean hit on me. You got anything to say?"

Forcing down a curse, Naruto got back to a knee. "Yeah, I do." Pushing himself all the way to his feet he stared definitely at the older man. "You talk too much. Shadow Clone Jutsu." Again clones appeared only this time it was three of them. Maneuvering themselves in position the four Narutos went on the attack.

Much like all of the previous attempts, Jiraiya easily avoided all the attacks that were aimed at him. This went on for about ten minutes until it seemed like he felt it was time to end it. With a smirk Jiraiya shot the hair from his head at all four Narutos, resulting in them resembling pincushions. "Nice try, you almost had me going for a while but in the end you came up a bit short. Perhaps you should've thought things through a little more."

"Or maybe you should've listened when I said that you talk too much." One by one the Naruto clones went away in a puff of smoke and when the fourth one disappeared it was revealed that all four had been clones.

Another thing that was revealed was that with each clone destroyed a round object fell to the ground. Jiraiya instantly knew what the things were but couldn't do anything as in concession four explosions consumed the area. When the explosions were done there was nothing more than a crater and smoke rising from it. "Well, was that good enough for you?" Naruto asked out loud."

"Yeah, it'll do." responded the person that Naruto's question had obviously been directly toward. Coming out from behind a tree was Jiraiya who didn't appear to be the least bit harmed from the explosions. "That was clever move that you came up with. Having your clones get close so they could sneak those bombs close enough to destroy my clone. Obviously you're starting to become more strategic and stronger. You've surpass your usual limit in creating shadow clones in one setting."

"Probably shouldn't be that surprising. After all, you've been beating me down for a week straight. It would either make me stronger or end of me being beaten to a bloody pulp." Turning away from the crater the blond looked over to his current sensei. "Now that I've done that, are you going to teach me the move that I wanted to learn?"

Letting out a sigh and rubbing the bridge of his nose, Jiraiya readied himself for the conversation that was going to be had. "Not this again. I've told you this already before. You're not ready to learn the Rasengan. It's too advanced for you right now. When the time is right I'll teach you how to use it."

"Like you you'll tell me about Orochimaru?" Naruto shot back. A silence came over the area as the discussion took a turn. "You said that you didn't know who Orochimaru was but you lied. After my team's little run in with him I had a talk with grandma Tsunade and she told me a lot about him. Such as he once being your teammate along with Tsunade's." Try as he might, Jiraiya glance away from the boy.

"You lied to me when I asked who he was and never thought of telling me. I would probably have a run in with him again and because you didn't warn me it nearly resulted in me and my friends being killed." Anger was clearly felt in Naruto's voice. Turning around he looked over his shoulder to his godfather. "Maybe you should think about being truthful with me since I've been completely honest with you about everything." Having nothing else to say, Naruto left the not looking back.

**00000000**

"My, isn't this a surprise?" After leaving Jiraiya at the training ground, Naruto headed back into the village. Once there he went to the hospital where he ran into a familiar face. "I didn't expect to see you here."

At the reception's desk was his pink haired teammate, Sakura Haruno. By the expression on her face she likewise was shocked by the unexpected meeting. "Hello there, Naruto. What brings you here?" Remembering the flower that she was carrying she tried to hide it behind her back. "I was here to uh…"

"See how Sasuke was doing?" figured Naruto even though he already knew that was the reason. The light blush covering Sakura's cheeks only confirm his suspicions. "So, how is mister dark and moody doing? Still has that stick up his ass?"

"I don't know." answered Sakura. She was so concern about her not so secret crush that she completely forgotten about the snide remarks that her blond teammate had made. "Every time I ask both the doctors and nurses say that they don't know where he went. I'm starting to worry about him." The words that Orochimaru said back in the forest replayed in her head.

"Don't worry. Knowing that prick he probably got started training as soon as he could." _"Especially since his first opponent is Gaara."_ Recalling what happen in the Suna shinobi's match against Lee helped drive the point that Gaara was extremely dangerous. "Well, I'll be going. There's something that I want to do before I head out."

"Mind if I join you?" Sakura tentatively asked. Seeing no harm in it, Naruto nodded his head. Together they pass a few rooms until they arrived in a room that someone they knew resided in. "Lee's in had shape. His arm and leg were seriously damaged. There's no telling when he'll recover." From her voice it was clear that Sakura wasn't happy about the condition that her friend was in.

After staying in the room for a while longer the two left and headed for their next destination. Much like with Lee moments ago, laying on a hospital bed and unconscious was Hinata Hyuga. Being the first time seeing his friend since the beating that she got in her match, Naruto felt a bit uneasy as he made his way over to her bed. The only thing that helped to put him at ease was that she was resting peacefully.

"Hinata didn't deserve this." muttered the boy. The anger that he was feeling was clearly felt in his words. "Neji went over the line during their match and I'll make sure that he regrets what he did." Deep in Naruto's subconscious the sound of Kyuubi growling at the anticipation of such a thing happening. "He'll pay and then some."

"Take it easy." Sakura tried to calm her teammate down. From the few times that she could recall when the blond became angered it didn't always ended well. "Allowing your emotions to cloud your thinking will only lead to even more problems. Besides, I don't think Hinata would like to know that she's the cause for her friend and cousin is going at one another like it was a battle to the death."

Thankfully that seemed to get through to Naruto as he calmed down somewhat. "You're right. I need to calm down before I regret it. I'm just glad that Hinata is going to be all right. Of course, after she takes it easy for a while."

"Yes. Tsunade did an incredible job in healing Hinata as soon as she arrived." Unknowingly, Sakura had a small smile come over her face. "It was said that she was amazing when she was treating both her and Lee."

Noticing the expression that his friend had, a thought came to Naruto. "You're really interested in medical jutsu, aren't you?" All he got was Sakura nodding her head. "Then maybe there's a way to help you with that."

**00000000**

"_How was I tricked into this?"_ Tsunade asked herself. It all started when she was asked by the Konoha medical staff for her and Shizune's help to treat the genin that got hurt during the Chunin Exam. She was going to say no but after some prodding from Shizune got Tsunade to accept.

Most of the injuries that had to be dealt with were nothing major and were quickly treated. Unfortunately though there were exceptions that could've been done without. That was referring to the two serious cases that were rushed to the hospital.

Hinata Hyuga had received some internal injuries that also resulted in internal bleeding. Thankfully she was treated in time before any permanent damage or possible death could occur. The girl would recover but not anytime soon.

As for the other case, sadly it didn't end up well. When Rock Lee was brought in work was immediately started to take care of the injuries that his left arm and leg sustained. After the procedure was done most of the damage was dealt with but another problem was discovered. Many bone fragments were found within his spinal column and were close on pressing the nerves.

An operation could be done to deal with it but when told about the risk it drove the dangerous of going through with it. In the end it was up to Lee whether he wanted to do the operation or not. Whatever choice he made, Tsunade hoped that he would make the right decision. Too many people had lost their lives doing something without really thinking it over.

That would've been the end of it but the medical staff had convinced Shizune and somehow Tsunade to accept the head positions of the hospital. Shizune had no problem with the new responsibility; the same couldn't be said about sannin. Now she no longer had the free time to do one of her favorite activities, gambling.

"_Maybe I could sneak out when no one is looking."_ Her halfway plan would be shot down as a knock at the door was heard. "Come in." Stepping in was a young girl that she knew in a roundabout way. "You're Sakura, are you not?" She received a small nod of confirmation. Clearly the girl was nervous to say anything. "I've heard a lot about you from your annoying teammate. What brings you here?"

Sakura's nervousness only seemed to get worse as she had a few failed tries at getting out what she wanted to say. "I –w-was hoping t-that…" Becoming more determined she stared confidently at the older woman before her. "I'm hoping that you'd teach me to become a medical shinobi. I wish to help those that are close to me."

For what felt like forever to her, Sakura waited to hear what the answer would be. Slowly a small glimpse of a smile was shown by Tsunade. _"Perhaps she has what it takes."_ Deciding to put an end to the girl's misery she went ahead and responded. "All right, I've decided. Starting today I'm going to take you under my wing. You should know that I won't go easy on you. Do we have an understanding?"

When Sakura heard that it seemed to wash away the concern that she was feeling. With what was obviously relief and gratitude came over her face as she looked to her new instructor. "Yes, I understand. I'll do my best to not let you down."

**00000000**

"That should be enough for today." Agreeing with him the second person joined Neji as they left the forest to head back to the village. "Soon I'll have that technique fully mastered. Though, I doubt that it won't be needed in my first match."

"Can you be sure about that?" questioned TenTen who was the one who was helping the Hyuga get ready for the finals of the exam. "You may want to think that Naruto is going to be easy to beat but I won't be so sure. He's going to go at you all out. I mean, he was pretty upset at what happen in your match with your cousin." She didn't like what happen either but kept her thoughts about it to herself.

"It does not matter how determined Uzumaki is." voiced Neji. "Fate has already decided who shall win our match. There's nothing that'll change it." TenTen didn't say anything but her dislike that she felt about what he said was clearly on her face.

**00000000**

"Piercing Fang." Rushing forward Kiba tried to strike his target. He wouldn't get it though at his target swiftly moved out of the way. This was repeated two more times until the Inuzuka boy voluntarily ended the attack. "What's the deal? Are you going to keep running or are you going to fight back?"

"Who said that I wasn't fighting back?" asked Shino calmly. What the bug user meant by that would be realized as Kiba started to get an itchy feeling on his legs. Looking down he saw that the feeling was from a swarm of insects going up his legs.

First reaction that came to the boy was frantically shaking his legs in the hopes that they would come off. But there was no luck as none of them let go. "Damn it Shino. Get them off me. You know how I hate it when you do this."

"All right, that's enough you two." instructed their sensei, Kurenai. She had been watching the whole thing from the sidelines with the Inuzuka boy's partner, Akamaru nearby, to evaluate two of her students. "Let's call it a day." That seemed to sound reasonable to both of them as Shino had his bugs leave Kiba and return to him so they could head back.

"You looked real good today Shino." Kurenai acknowledged. "You should be more than ready for the finals." Shino merely nodded his head in gratitude.

"Hopefully Hinata will be better in time so she could be able to watch the matches." spoke Kiba. When he realized his mistake it was too late to take it back. All three of them became a bit solemn. Thewhole thing that happen with their team member was evidently still a touchie subject for all of them. "Would it be all rightif we…swing by the hospital to pay Hinata a visit?"

Seeing nothing wrong with the idea and getting a similar reaction from the quiet bug user, Kurenai agreed. Taking a detour they headed off to see their recovering teammate. Maybe a visit would help speed up her recovery.

**00000000**

"Shouldn't you be training?" wondered Ino. She had gone out to get lunch and happen to bump into the rest of her team. In the end she decided to join them. "After all, don't you want to become a chunin?"

"What do you think I've been doing the pat few days?" Shikamaru shot back. "Asuma has been running me ragged nonstop to get me ready. He even got Choji to help me train." He glanced over to his friend who was enjoying his lunch. "Besides, it doesn't matter if I win or not. The whole thing is just troublesome."

"Shikamaru." scolded Asuma. "That's enough with that kind of thinking. You should consider yourself fortunate. There are many who would do anything to be in your place. You could at least make an effort. Wouldn't want to look bad in front of all those people that'll be watching do you?" That seemingly got through to the Nara boy which was as much as Asuma could've hope for.

**00000000**

"Are you ready for what's to come?" In the apartment that they were given, two of the three Suna shinobi were taking a day off. During the time off they did whatever maintenance on their weapons.

"Please. Like I need to worry about him." said Temari while polishing her fan. "I'm going up against a lazy bum. The match is in the bag."

"I wasn't talking about the finals." corrected Kankuro. Knowing what her brother meant by that, the wind user became somewhat somber. "When things go done it's going to be crazy. I'll ask you again. Are you ready for what's to come?"

"Yes, I'll be ready." It was then that Temari remembered something. "Where's Gaara? Think it's smart to let him go off on his own?"

"Don't worry. Not even Gaara would be that stupid to do something at this time, even if he's craving to go after the Uchiha boy and the fox kid." _"At least I hope he doesn't do anything."_

**00000000**

In an unknown area was the third shinobi from Suna and their village's demon host, Gaara of the desert. He had his hands against his head in the hopes of suppressing the bloodlust that he had been craving. _"Please, wait a little longer. Soon you'll have that precious blood. Just a little longer is all I ask."_ Thankfully that put a stop to the craving if only temporarily. _"I knew that you'd understand, mother."_

**00000000**

"Ah, so you finally showed up." acknowledged Kakashi. He was at a barren and rocky terrain. The jonin had been on his own until the person that he seemingly had been waiting for finally showed up. "Are you ready to start your training?"

Standing not that far away was Sasuke Uchiha. From the look on his face he was completely focus. "Yes. I'm ready for whatever you have planned for me. So let's get started."

**00000000**

In an area that was known by only a few people was Fox. The reason for being there was so he could do some private training. After doing that for most of the day he leaned against a tree and slid to the floor in exhaustion. _"I'm getting close. I almost have it down."_

"My, you sure did a number on this place." Waling over was Jiraiya who after seeing the destruction that was done. "Don't tell me that you were trying to learn the Rasengan on your own."

"Don't worry, I haven't tried it." In a moment, Fox transformed back into Naruto. "All of this is from some other jutsus that I've been working on the side. Soon I'll have them down."

"I have no doubt about that." Uneasy silence came over the two of them and it lasted for a while until Jiraiya spoke up. "You didn't come home last night. Any reason why?"

"I'm spent the night at Shikamaru's." Getting back to his feet, Naruto stretched to get rid of any muscle cramps. "Figured that it was a good idea to talk about what has been going on recently. He hasn't held anything from me. I thought that it would be a nice change of pace." It didn't take long for Jiraiya to understand the not so subtle meaning behind those words.

"Okay. I deserve that. But you got to understand my reasons." Getting no interruption from the young blond it was figured that he could continue. "I had hoped that you wouldn't actually run into Orochimaru since you're not ready to go against him. Doesn't matter what form you use. If told you would do all you could to find and fight him." The sudden avoiding of eye contact from Naruto was all the confirmation that the older man needed that his suspicions were correct.

"If it wasn't for you catching him off guard and not taking you seriously, Orochimaru would've wiped you out without any real effort. That's why I've decided to teach you the Rasengan." _"Somewhat fitting since it's his father's jutsu."_ "So what do you say? Are you up for it?"

Looking at his perverted godfather, Naruto let a sly smile to show itself. "Bring it on you old pervert. I'm ready."

* * *

Yeah, I know that this chapter was more or less was a bit of cooling off chapter from the preliminary matches and set up for what's to come. They'll be a few original chapters before the Chunin Exam finals happens. Some stuff from the actual series will also be in those chapters. Just have to read the chapters when they come out.


	31. Waves

Here it is readers. Another new chapter. Mostly it's going to be a original chapter and I hope that it'll still be worth reading. Who knows, someone of you may be surprised by what I did with it. Now, as for the disclaimer, I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Chapter 31:  
Waves

"Hurry up, they're getting away." It was late in Konoha but it was very lively in a certain area. In the place that was suppose to contain the village's criminals a commotion was happening. That commotion was a prison break that allowed some of the inmates to get out.

"We mustn't allow them to escape." As fast as possible the prison guards tried to catch up but wasn't able to reach them. Regrettably the only criminals that actually escape from the prison made a complete getaway. "By the pace they're going, they're going to be across the village border by daybreak. Anyone have an idea where they might be heading?"

"We can't be sure. But by the direction that they went there are only a few places that they could go. We can only hope that before anything happens until Mizuki Tougi and the Idiot Brothers captured.

**00000000**

Next Day…

"Come on you guys. We're almost there."

"For heaven sake, take it easy Naruto." exclaimed an irritated Ino. "We'll be there soon. So give it a rest already." She wasn't the only one who wanted to say something like that but was the one person who actually said it.

"How can I be relaxed?" asked Naruto who didn't let his excitement drop. "I never thought that I would actually return to the Land of Waves."

"I can understand where you're coming from in a way." acknowledged Kiba with Akamaru hitching a ride on top of his owner's head. "I'm interested to see what changes have happen since the last time we were there."

"But remember we have a mission to complete." reminded the final member of the team, TenTen. "We're supposed to do a follow up of how the Land of Waves has recovered since being freed from Gatô. Then if necessary, deal with any problems that might be there."

"Yeah but I recall that the village wanted the ones that were responsible for freeing them to do the mission." voiced Ino. "Too bad certain situations made that mostly impossible." What she meant by that was that most of the people from Kakashi and Kurenai's teams were unable to do the mission for various reasons.

Sakura was doing her medical training from Tsunade, which was said to be going well. Hinata was still incapacitated due to her injuries. The only saving thing was that she was out of the hospital and getting better. As for Sasuke and Shino, they were getting trained by their respective senseis in preparation for the finals. That left only Naruto and Kiba from the original group to go and meant that some slots needed to be filled.

"I'm curious about something Naruto." spoke TenTen. "I can understand why the others aren't here and why Kiba is here. But why did you decide to come? Shouldn't you be getting ready for the finals?"

"Don't worry about me. I'll be ready for the finals." reassured Naruto. "Besides, this'll be a good way to get ready." That was the reason that he gave them but he had a hidden objective for going on this mission.

**00000000**

Flashback, Yesterday…

"Mizuki escaped from prison?" Hearing that was something that Naruto wasn't happy to hear. "How the hell did he manage to get away without being caught?"

"Apparently he didn't escape on his own." informed Jiraiya. "From the reports it was said that there were two other escapees with him. Whenever any of the guards got close they were quickly taken cared of by the two accomplices." Reaching into his coat he pulled out a folder and handed it to Naruto. Opening the folder the boy saw two pictures that were attached to papers that gave a profile on each person.

"Their names are Fujin and Raijin, they're known as the Idiot Brothers. Neither of them are that bright but they're incredibly strong. Probably close to how strong Tsunade is." Comparing them to the blonde haired sannin was saying something.

"Then most likely Mizuki used their stupidity to get them to help him escape." Closing the folder Naruto handed it back. "Now, what does this have to do with me? You're not suggesting that I go after them, are you? I mean, can't the ANBU Black Ops or a group of jonin handle it?"

"That's true." confirmed Jiraiya. "Also, I'm not asking you to go after them. I'm just giving you a heads up." Getting a confused look from his young charge he went ahead and explained. "From what has been reported the three of them made a quick escape out of Konoha. Many shinobi teams are looking for them but with the concern about what Orochimaru might be planning, only a few can be deployed. One of the places that they may of ran off to is the Land of Waves."

"Putting the pieces together, Naruto concluded what the man was getting at. "And you want me, and in a roundabout way, Fox to keep an eye out for them and if necessary capture them." A nod of the head from Jiraiya was the only confirmation that was given. "Can't make any promises but I'll do what I can."

**00000000**

End of Flashback…

"_Although the chances of me running into those three is unlikely, I can't be too certain. In the end I'll just have to wait and see."_ "Anyway, come on you guys. We're almost there." Acting like his usual self, Naruto headed off ahead of the others who just shook their heads at the scene.

Took about another hour for them to reach the Land of Waves and they headed for a place that Naruto and Kiba knew. That being the home of the village's bridge builder Tazuna. When they arrived they were greeted by the woman of the house, Tsunami who was glad to see all of them. "Why don't you all come in? You must be hungry."

Accepting the offer, the four of them went in and while they ate they gave Tsunami and Tazuna a brief explanation on why they were there. "So, how are things been going since we were last here?" questioned Naruto.

"Things have been great." replied Tazuna. "With Gatô's influence now gone everything have gotten better. The people have also become stronger and have become more united." You could tell by the sound of his voice that Tazuna was proud about how things have improved. "And it's thanks to you two and your groups that it was possible."

"No thanks are needed." stated Kiba. "We were only doing our part, nothing more. But I must admit that I could've handle things on my own." His self boasting only got groans from his teammates.

"Getting to the reason why we were sent here, has anything happen lately?" inquired TenTen. "Strange events or unexplained occurrences for instance."

Thinking for a moment Tsunami spoke up again. "Now that you mention it, there have been rumors of places being ransacked and people being spotted in the forest. Whether there's any truth to them is unknown."

"Then I guess we'll have to find out for ourselves." declared Ino. Nods from everyone were in agreement with the suggestion. "But let's start tomorrow. We wouldn't want Tsunami's amazing good food to go to waste." Another group agreement was made but with laughter being heard as well.

**00000000**

Next Day…

"Remember the plan that we came up with last night you guys." reminded Kiba. "We split up and search for anything suspicious. Find anything we get the others and take it on as a team."

"Wow. That sounds so complicated." stated Naruto in a sarcastic manner. "Maybe we should write it down." That resulted in Kiba becoming angry while Ino and TenTen chuckled. Getting serious again, all of them spilt up and started their search.

"_Could it be that Mizuki and his associates are actually here? If that's the case, what should I do? Should I try to handle them myself or have the others help? Maybe I should wait to decide until I actually find them or not."_ So deep in his thoughts he didn't even realize that his searching led him to a familiar area. _"I didn't expect that I would ever be standing here again."_

Right before Naruto was a grave that had a zanbatō stuck in the ground beside it. The grave was of the outlaw shinobi from Kiri, Zabuza Momochi. Even though he was dangerous and vicious man, in the end he managed to repent somewhat by putting an end to Gatô. From how it looked it seemed like Zabuza hadn't changed one bit which Naruto was glad to see.

It was when he was standing before the grave that he caught something from the corner of his eye. May have been brief but it wasn't missed. _"Someone was watching me from the shadows. It could've been one of them."_ Moving quickly as his legs would allow him, Naruto chased after the person. Try as he might he was having trouble keeping up with the person.

With a bit of an adrenaline rush he was able to close in the gap. Grabbing the person he managed to pin them to the ground. It was only then that he got a good look at who the person was. "It's you." Pinned to the ground was someone that Naruto had a previous run in with. "What are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same thing." retorted the captured person. "Do you mind getting off me? Being in this position is starting to make me uncomfortable." Slowly Naruto went ahead and let go of the person. Doing the same, the other person stood up while fixing their clothes. "It appears as though you've gotten stronger since last time. You never would've caught me back then."

"As much as I appreciate the flattery, I did ask you a qestuion. What are you doing here Haku?" Ineed the person that had been caught was the partner of Zabuza when they were working with Gatô. In the end he was the only one that got out of the incident alive. "From what I remember you disappeared without a trace. What's with the sudden reappearance?"

"Who says that I need a reason to be back here?" Haku questioned, without giving an answer.

"Maybe because if certain people knew that you were here they may try to get rid of you." replied the blond haired shinobi. Neither one said anything for a bit as they let the silence come over them. "Could the reason why you're here have anything to do with visiting Zabuza's grave?" Only reaction that was seen was a slight lowering of Haku's eyes. "Maybe along the way you decided to ransack a few places."

Looking up at the boy, Haku gave him a confused stare. "You must be mistaken. I just arrived here earlier today."

Naruto was going to question the former Kiri shinobi when he caught the scent of something. He couldn't be sure but the scent smelled familiar. _"It's faint but I can still follow it if I hurry."_ "Then go ahead and do whatever you came here to do. I've got more important things to deal with." Taking off through the tree tops the blond left with a confused Haku behind who was wondering what was going on.

**00000000**

"What's taking so long? I losing previous time that I could be using to do some research." The continuous complaining from Jiraiya had already became annoying and the other person there was close to retaliating in a physical manner.

"Will you shut up already." snapped Tsunade. "You've done enough spying on women to last a lifetime. So stop complaining and be quiet." While the female medical specialist was acting all calm and collective, the same couldn't be said what she was feeling on the inside.

"Shouldn't you be helping at the hospital? Not to mention training a certain young girl?"

"I would be there if it wasn't for me being ordered here. As for that other thing, Shizune is teaching her in my place." Thinking back at how the previous training sessions have gone Tsunade couldn't help but smile. _"If things continue like they have I got no doubt that Sakura will turn out to be an amazing medical shinobi."_

Not long after, the Third Hokage arrived and sat before the two of them. "First off, I thank you for showing up on such notice." With the formalities now out of the way Sarutobi became serious. "One of the reasons why I asked you here is to ask for your assistance. We've gotten information that reveals that Orochimaru is planning something that involves our village."

That information wasn't new to Jiraiya and Tsunade as Naruto had managed to get that bit of news in a roundabout way. They couldn't say that since it may lead to Naruto being discovered as Fox. "Whatever my former student has planned it'll most likely happen during the finals. What I'm asking is for you two to lend your strength when that time comes."

"Sure old man." replied Jiraiya after only a bit of hesitation. '"When the time comes I'm sure that we'll take care of our old friend." _"Plus, I doubt that Naruto would stand back and do nothing if something like that would happen."_ Around that time it was notice that Tsunade hadn't said anything. It didn't take long for her to notice the attention that she was getting.

"Okay. You can count me in as well." she answered with less enthusiasm. "But I will also help tend to the wounded. That's my only demand." Accepting the request, the Hokage got to the next subject. "As for the other reason why you're here, I have a request of my own and I'm hoping that one of you can fulfill."

**00000000**

"I'm almost there." Following the scent that he managed to catch Naruto hurried to where it was leading him. Soon he arrived in a secluded area in the forest that would be nearly impossible to find if you were trying. What he found were the three people that Naruto had been secretively looking for.

Two of them were large and bulky looking men and wearing simple open gray vests and matching shorts. Remembering them from the profiles that he was given he knew that they were Fujjin and Raijin, the Idiot Brothers. Third and final person was someone that he knew, that being Mizuki Touji. He was wearing a similar type of outfit as his two associates but what caught Naruto by surprise was that Mizuki certainly bulked up since he last saw him.

"_What should I do? Should I just go after them now or should I go get the others?"_ No answer would be decided as Naruto had to suddenly move out of the way as an attack was sent his way. By him having to move so unexpectedly caused him to inadvertently reveal himself to the enemy. _"There goes the idea of going to get the others."_

"What do we have here?" asked Mizuki in amusement. "Apparently there was a rat hiding about. I wonder are you involved in the search to capture us. You could go ahead and answer."

Knowing that saying the first thing that he wanted to say wouldn't be a smart move, the blond decided to be more conserved. At least until an opening to get away showed itself. "What are you talking about? I was walking by when I heard something and it led me here." That sounded like a reasonable excuse. _"I guess having to make excuses when I have to disappear to become Fox has made it easier to do so."_ Now he only hoped that it was good enough for them to let him go.

"Just walking by, huh? That sounds reasonable." Managing to keep a sigh of relief from coming out, Naruto thought that was going to be it. The next second he had to get out of the way of a sudden attack. "Nice try. From how you were able to avoid that attack so quickly it's obvious that you're a shinobi." established Mizuki, not fooled at all. "Boys, I think that it's time to have some fun with our new friend."

"Oh fun." exclaimed a happy Raijin. "What should we play big brother?"

"I don't know Raijin." answered Fujin. "Maybe he has some food though."

Seeing it as a chance to get away, Naruto used a smoke bomb to cover his escape. "Hurry and find that kid." ordered Mizuki in anger. _"If that kid tells where we are I'll have no chance of getting away."_

"I wouldn't worry about some kind." announced someone. Though no name was given, Mizuki knew who it was. His suspicions were confirmed when he turned around and saw Fox. "After all, you got more important things to worry about." Fox's arrival didn't sit well with Mizuki and he had no problem saying it.

"What the hell are you doing here?" The hatred that the man felt for the unwanted long haired boy was evident. You could practically feel the venom that was behind each of his words.

"No reason. Just came around to see the sights." Slowly the humor that Fox was showing was replaced by a more serious attitude. "Along the way I happen to come across two overgrown meatheads and one traitorous bastard. Out of curiosity Mizuki, when you were in prison did you ever 'drop the soap'?"

Knowing what he meant by that, Mizuki became even angrier than before. "I'll make you pay for making a fool out of me. Fujin, Raijin, see that person there? He's here to stop you fomr having the food that I promise you." After that was said the two brothers became enraged. "Why don't you show him how you feel about that?" With that Mizuki took off.

"Hold up. You're not going anywhere." Fox was going to go after him but was stopped when one of the brothers rushed in and punched him in the face. The force behind it was so strong that it caused him to fall several feet away.

"You're not getting away." yelled the brother that hit him, Fujin. "There's no way that we'll allow you to keep us from the food that we were promise."

"Big brother is right." added an equally furious Raijin. "We'll make you regret for you getting in the way."

"_Damn it. I don't have time for this."_ thought Fox. _"More time I spend dealing with these two the farther Mizuki gets away. Add the fact that they have the strength that's close to grandma Tsunade's. Guess that means that I've got to change plans."_ "Shadow Clone Jutsu." All about the area were multiple lones of Fox. The move was unexpected as it caused the brothers to briefly forget about their anger.

"There's so many of them, brother." said Raijin. He started to count but had trouble shortly after. "Fujin, there's too many of them for me to count. I don't have enough fingers."

"Don't worry brother. You could use mine." Obviously Fujin and Raijin weren't known as the Idiot Brothers for nothing.

Taking the opportunity to attack, Fox had his clones attack. They all attacked at once but it seemed that none of them did any damage. It didn't even seem like they even notice. _"Though the two of them are thick it's mostly muscle."_ Demonstrating what he thought the brother dealt with his clones like they were nothing. _"If I was able to use the Rasengan I might be able to stop them. Unfortunately I'm not able to use it correctly and using those other jutsus would nearly drain me and be unable to go after Mizuki. I've got to come up with something."_ Try as he might, Fox wasn't able to come up with anything.

With the brothers coming toward him he became tense as he didn't know what to do. Before anything could happen they suddenly fell to the ground and showed no sign of getting up. Going over to them, Fox saw that sticking in their necks were senbon needles. "So, you decided to get involved didn't you?"

Entering the scene was Haku and in one of his hands were a few more needles. "Sorry but I could help it. Seeing you suddenly leaving made me curious." From how things were going it was clear that Haku knew who Fox was. "Now, do you mind explaining what's going on?"

**00000000**

"_Those two idiots better do their part and keep that bastard Fox busy while I get away."_ Going as fast as his body could go, Mizuki hurried away from where he encountered Fox. _"I've got to get out of Fire Country quickly as possible before I'm captured. As long as nothing gets my way the chances of me getting away are likely."_ He was on his way on doing so until he saw what was in front of him. _"I just had to jinx myself."_

"Looks like we got lucky." voiced Kiba while he was with Ino and TenTen. "We were looking for that idiot Naruto and we happen to come across a wanted criminal. It must be our lucky day."

"Damn it. I don't have time for this. By the looks of it they're only genin so I most likely take them." In that moment Mizuki threw a series of kunai at his opposition. They would all be deflected by TenTen's own kunai. Mizuki tried to get away but was stopped when Kiba stepped in the way.

What came to pass was a brief fight that resulted in the older former Konoha shinobi knocking down the less experienced opponent. All that was left between him and his possible freedom was Ino. Wanting to make quick work of it, Mizuki pulled out a scroll and summoned a large shuriken. Throwing his weapon he hoped that it would do the job.

During the whole confrontation, Ino tried to think of some way to help but no matter what she couldn't think of anything. _"He's moving too much for me to use my Mind Transfer Jutsu."_ When the man suddenly threw the large shuriken at her she wasn't able to get away. _"My body won't move. Is this some kind of paralyzing jutsu? I've got to do something or I'm dead."_ Try as she might Ino's efforts were in vain as she couldn't get out of the way.

Closing her eyes she braced herself for what was to come. It wouldn't happen though because at the last second she was moved out of the way by someone. "You should be more careful." Opening her eyes, Ino looked up to the person that saved her and saw that it was Fox. "Wouldn't want anything bad to happen to you, would we?" Turning her gaze away from him the bleach blonde girl realized that her savor was holding her bridal style.

Blushing heavily, Ino got to her feet and stood away. "Thank you. I appreciate it." she was able to get out despite being unusually shy. Finding the moment amusing, Fox simply smiled before becoming serious again as he focus on his target.

"For shame Mizuki. Running away shortly after I found you. If I didn't know any better I would think that you didn't like me. Am I wrong?" By the unpleasant look on the man's face it was clear that he wasn't wrong. "Oh well, it doesn't matter. That's still not going to stop you from serving your time as someone's bitch in prison."

That only fueled the con's anger as he threw even more kunai at the taunting enemy. Unlike before, they reached their target as they all pierced Fox's body. Before any type of gloating could be done, the body of Fox disappeared in a puff of smoke.

"Nice move there." commented someone familiar. Searching frantically, Mizuki tried to find the person. "Too bad it was pointless." Getting nervous he was thinking of taking one of the genin as a hostage but before he could he felt the presence of someone trying to come up behind him.

Moving swiftly he turned around he plunged a kunai into what revealed to be Fox's stomach. "Ha. I got you." proclaimed an excited Mizuki. Removing his kunai he watched with sadistic gleam in his eyes as his young tormentor fell to his knees while clutching his stomach.

"Not so cocky now are you? Maybe you should've learned to not get involved in things that don't concern you." Mizuki's boasting would probably have continued if it wasn't for the sudden laughter coming from Fox.

"And maybe you should've learned to not presume things without being certain about them." What Fox meant by that would be discovered when he ripped his shirt from his collar down. Underneath the shirt were a couple of paper bombs. By the time that Mizuki realized what was going on it was too late as the bomb went off and the fugitive prisoner was caught in the explosion.

When it was over all that was left was a small crater and a slightly charred and unconscious Mizuki. "What the hell just happen?" questioned Kiba who was the first one to say something after what just happen. "Did he just kill himself to beat him? Was he nuts?"

"I wouldn't say 'nuts'." voiced someone they thought was dead. Sitting on a tree branch was Fox who didn't seem the lease bit harmed. "Maybe having a screw loose or two but the jury is still out on that." Leaping down he went to Mizuki and kicked him in the side. "Perhaps I went too far with the shadow clone/paper bomb combo. He won't be getting up anytime soon but that's not my problem."

What came next was a complete surprise as a group of ANBU Black Ops showed up and surrounded the area. "Well, look who finally decided to show op." There was no telling what the ANBU were feeling as they all had on those animal masks that covered their entire face.

One of them went over to where Mizuki laid and after seeing his condition he looked back to Fox. Though it couldn't be seen it seemed like he wasn't amused. "What? He's still breathing."

"You mind explaining why you're here?" inquired the ANBU. It appeared as though he was the leader of the squad. From his voice he wasn't going to let Fox go without an answer.

"Most likely I'm here for the same reason as you. I have a past with this guy and I decided to lend a hand." That was basically the truth so it was a reasonable excuse. "Don't worry, you can do the same thing as last time and keep my involvement out of your report. However, make sure to mention those three." Fox was referring to Kiba, TenTen and Ino who were surprise to be mentioned in the conversation.

"They were able to keep Mizuki busy long enough until I showed up. They're skilled and they'll get better as time goes on." The three genin sent their gratitude for the kind words. "Now if you excuse me, I'll be going." Before Fox could take two steps he was stopped by the same ANBY guy as he was standing in his way.

"Afraid we can't let you do that. There are some questions that we would like you to answer." Slowly some of the other ANBU start moving in so to prevent him from escaping."

"Sorry but I'll have to take a rain check on that. Goodbye." Right before they eyes of everyone there, a smiling Fox disappeared in a cloud of smoke, revealing that it had been a shadow clone all along. Shock and surprise went through the place and it wouldn't end until someone new entered the scene.

"Hey you guys." Running in was the fourth genin member of the team, Naruto Uzumaki. When the spiky haired blond got closer he was surprised by what he entered into. "Whoa. What did I miss?"

"Where the hell have you been?" demanded Ino. She seemed to be extremely upset about the boy's late arrival and she wasn't the only one apparently. "We were going against a prison runaway and you decided to show up now? What could've been so important that-what happen to your face?"

Ino's sudden change of questions made Kiba and TenTen to focus on the boy's face. On the left side of Naruto's head was a nasty bruise that went from his temple to his jaw. The three of them couldn't help but grimes as the bruise looked painful.

"Oh, you mean this?" Naruto asked as though he had forgotten about it. "It's nothing really. It's just something that I got from this bastard's two friends. You go back a mile or so the way that I came and you'll fine them unconscious. I think their names were Fujin and Raijin."

"You went against those two?" asked one of the ANBU members. They seemed surprise as they knew about the two brothers' reputation. "You're lucky to only get a bruise. How did you even beat those them?"

"First off, I never wanted to fight them." argued Naruto. "I was looking for my team when I saw Mizuki running away from Fox. Remembering that he was the one that kidnapped a friend of mine and her sister I decided to go after him as well. Unfortunately I was ambushed by his simple minded friends." To help prove his point, Naruto gestured to the bruise on his face that was slowly fading away thanks to his quick healing.

"As for how they were beaten, I had help from somebody. Let' me introduce you to him." Motioning over to where he came from, Naruto signaled for the person to come out. Hesitantly coming to out to the open was a cautious Haku.

While Ino and TenTen didn't know who he was, it was a different story for Kiba as he was one of the other people that was at the Land of Waves last time. His dislike for the unexpected situation and even Akamaru was close to attacking. Major explaining was needed to be done before anything physical happen and hopefully after it was done it would smooth things over.

**00000000**

A Day Later…

"Well, we're heading out." On the bridge that led to Konoha was the four genin. They were about to leave for home but were having a few parting words with someone. "Our mission is done and we need to g et back to the village. You understand right?"

"Don't worry, I understand." acknowledged the one person there to see them off. "You got things to take care of back home. The same goes for me now as well. Hope that you have good luck in the future. May I have a word with you in private Naruto?"

Agreeing with the favor the blond followed him until they were out of earshot of the others. "Well, any second thoughts on how things ended up Haku? I mean, becoming the Land of Waves' protector is a surprising decision to make."

"No, I'm okay with my decision." confirmed Haku. "Consider as atonement for what I've done. Thanks for doing what you did Naruto. If you didn't stood up for me when you did I would likely have been taken by the ANBU."

"Oh, don't give me all the credit. I think they were returning the favor for helping to capture Fujin and Raijin. Also, I'm doubtful you'll have any problems here. With the exception of Tazuna and his family no one knows about your previous connection with Gatô. In time they may consider you as one of their own." Turning around Naruto was about to head off but stopped. "Before I go, I want to make sure about something. About the conversation we had, I wanted to know if you're planning on…"

"You don't need to worry." reassured Haku as he knew what the blond was trying to say. "Your secret is safe with me. However, I suggest that you think about telling your friends. It'll only cause problems in the end if you don't."

A seldom look came over the demon host's face as he heard the boy's advice. "You're right. They need to know. But now isn't the time. It'd be too dangerous for them to know now." Trading a few goodbyes Naruto rejoin the others as they made their way toward home.

**00000000**

"I'm telling you guys, I can't wait to get back to Konoha." Kiba's words were shared by the rest of the team. Even Akamaru gave a bark to support his partner.

"I agree. This mission was more stressful than we thought it would be." added TenTen. It was then that she noticed that the other female member of the team was being strangely quiet. "What's up Ino? Is something on your mind?"

Realizing that the others were looking at her, the girl in question fidgeted a bit. "It's nothing. I'm just thinking about how Fox took care of Mizuki so easily. That was really something." Slowly a light blush came over Ino's cheeks. This didn't go unnoticed by the others.

"If I didn't know any better it sounds as though you're starting to have a crush on Fox." Kiba meant for it to be a joke but when Ino's blush became even redder it couldn't be denied. "You do have a crush on him. I mean, showing up and saving the day like some glanet knight. You can't help but admire someone like that."

"Hey, are you all right Naruto?" asked TenTen. The reason she asked was because the boy had a hand over his mouth as if trying to hold something in.

Unknown by any of them, Naruto had his mouth covered to prevent the laughter that was a result from the conversation that he was hearing. "Oh, it's nothing really. It's nothing at all."

* * *

I know, it was somewhat a surprise that I brought back both Mizuki and Haku into the story but I thought it was a good way to further get away from the whole Chunin Exam for a bit longer also to give Haku some kind of purpose since I had him simply disappear last time he was around.

Don't expect to see Mizuki to return again although I can't say the same about Haku. He may return later in the story and even if I did, it won't be for a while. It all depends on how much a demand to see him return. Next chapter will be out later this month and to give you a little heads up, they'll be two more chapters before the finals of the exam happens.

That's pretty much it. So until next time, see ya.


	32. Bones

Here it is readers. The next chapter to my story. You may be wondering what's with the title of the chapter but you'll understand as you read it. Expect to see some interesting things. Hopefully you won't be disappointed by it. As for the disclaimer, I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Chapter 32:  
Bones

"You summoned me, my Lord." In a dark and isolated room was boy kneeling before a throne. Seated on the throne was the ruler of Oto, Orochimaru.

"Yes I have. I got a mission that's perfect for you." Throwing the folder he had the boy open it. "Inside is the information that we gotten on your target. Also in the folder are your instructions when you make contact. Do you have any problems with the mission?" All he got was silence. "Then go." Wordlessly the boy left to complete what he was asked to do. "What's your opinion about the situation Kabuto?" Appearing from the shadows was Orochimaru's right hand man.

"A very interesting strategy I must say." replied the medical specialist truthfully. "Whatever way the mission goes it'll eliminate one of our problems." For a moment a curious expression came over Kabuto's face. "But are you the least bit concern at the chances of the mission not going the way that you wanted?"

Instead of any anger as a response, a snide smile came across the snake sannin's face. "Do not worry Kabuto. No matter what happens it's doubtful that my faithful servant would allow himself to fail."

**00000000**

"Okay. I think that you lost me. Mind repeating that again?" suggested Naruto. What he just heard had shocked him that he needed to hear it again.

"I don't know what the big deal is." commented Jiraiya casually. "It sounds like a simple thing to me."

"But I still can't believe it. How can the next Hokage be her?" Naruto had returned from the Land of Waves about an hour ago and the news that he heard surprised him.

As for the person that he was referring to, it was the well known medical specialist, Tsunade. She had been sitting quietly during the back and forth banter but slowly was starting to get irritated and Shizune was the only one to notice so far. "Is that what you think?" questioned Tsunade. "And you think that you could be a better Hokage?"

When he heard that last part, Naruto had to laugh. "Yeah right, me Hokage. That'll be the day." He let out another laugh but stopped as he gave it some thought. By the look on his face the thought became even more interesting to him.

"Anyway, it'll become official after the Chunin Exam is over." informed Jiraiya to get back to the matter at hand. "So until then keep it quiet as not to create any unnecessary distraction."

"Fine, I'll keep quiet about it." assured Naruto. However, there seemed to be something off by his voice. "If you excuse me, I want to do some final training before the finals." That said the boy left, leaving the three older people in confusion.

"Well, that was weird." voiced Shizune. "I wonder what that was all about. Didn't have to do with what we were talking about, did it?"

"I guess all this talk about replacing Hokages brought up brought up some bad memories for the kid." muttered Tsunade. What her mentor said only confused Shizune even more.

"Though it's not general knowledge, the name of the person that took over for the Sarutobi was Minato Namikaze, Naruto's father." explained Jiraiya. "Minato had married Kurshina Uzumaki before becoming Hokage. His term wasn't that long as…unfortunate circumstances ended that and his life." The topic was obviously one that Jiraiya preferred to not talk about as he avoided saying anymore about that.

"Naruto was born shortly before that. The rest is history. Give him time and he'll be all right. That's all that can be done." Tsunade and Shizune could only go along with the man's suggestion as he knew Naruto better than they did.

**00000000**

"Hey Naruto, hold up." Looking back the boy in question saw his friend Shikamaru coming over. "Heard that you came back from your mission and I've been looking all over for you."

"Well, I'm here. What do you need to tell me?" Whatever issues may have been going through Naruto's head, he managed to keep it to himself. "It must be something important since you were trying so hard to find me."

"Depends how you think about it. Apparently Kabuto Yakushi was revealed to be an Oto spy." Glancing over to his friend, Shikamaru could see that Naruto had a smile on his face when hearing that bit of news. "Do you know the reason why he snuck in Sasuke's hospital room?"

"Sorry, no." Naruto answered truthfully. "All I know is that Orochimaru has something planned and Sasuke has something to do with it." Thinking that it was a good idea, the blond decided to change the subject. "Oh well, I'll let that perverted godfather of mine deal with that. I've got the Chunin Exam to worry about. Speaking of which, how are things going on your part? Learn anything new?"

Instead of giving an answer, Shikamaru actually smirked at his friend. "Afraid I can't tell you. You better than anyone knows that it's good to keep something secret until the time is right." For his part, Naruto had to let out a slight laugh. After talking for a while longer they finally went their separate ways.

**00000000**

Unaware to either genin but from the rooftops someone had been watching them. More precisely, one of them as the person didn't move their eyes away from the person. It was only after recognizing when the person started to move did he speak up. "Is there a reason why you're here or are you trying to bother me?"

Coming out form the shadows was Oto shinobi, Dosu Kinuta. He looked the same as he did during the start of the exam except that there wasn't any metal gauntlet on his right arm and that same arm was cradled close to his body. "As a matter of fact, there is a reason why I'm here." There was clear hostility in Dosu's voice. "I was told that I would be the one to deal with Fox. Why have you suddenly been given the assignment?"

"I believe you had your chance in completing your mission when you had a match against Fox in his other form. You failed to accomplish what you were ordered to do so it was given to me." The cold and indifference in the guy's voice seemed to only anger Dosu further. "So do the smart thing and don't get in my way."

Not able to take it anymore, Dosu threw a kunai at his fellow Oto shinobi. It wouldn't do any damage as the guy moved out of harm's way without even looking. "Like hell I'm going to stand back. I don't care who you are, I'm not going to let you take this away from me."

Finally, the new guy turned his attention to his hostile companion. "So you wish to fight me to see who should go after the target?" All that was given as confirmation was Dosu grabbing another kunai. "If that's what you want then so be it. This won't be long to resolve."

**00000000**

"I guess I've found my limit." In a somewhat secluded area, Naruto was doing as he said earlier and that was doing some last minute training. What came from it was many of the surrounding trees and boulders having several craters in them. _"So, I can only maintain the Rasengan for about two minutes before I start to lose it. At least it's something."_

Calling it and end to the training Naruto decided that it was a good time as any to head home. Due to it be late in the day most of the people had already went home, leaving the streets practically deserted. Even though he was the only one walking about, Naruto couldn't 'shake the feeling that he was being him.

"_Now isn't this an unwanted situation, I'm being spied on. I better deal with it elsewhere. If I fight were to happen here someone could be caught in the crossfire. Meaning I should take this somewhere more secluded."_ Going with that line of logic Naruto took a detour that led him out of the village. He continued to walk until arriving at a forest area that was spacious but plenty of places that could be use to hide. "All right, you can quiet hiding. I know that you're here."

His suspicions would prove to be correct as stepping out from behind a tree not that far from him. The guy was older than him, long white hair which ended at the end of his neck that had some of the hairs tied together. Right above his green eyes were two red dots. What he was wearing was lavender pants and an off white shirt that was loose enough that it left his shoulder bare and some of his chest exposed.

Another thing that stood out about the guy at the center of his collarbone was some kind of black mark. "Very impressive." remarked the guy who didn't seem the least bit upset about being found out. "You truly are impressive as I was told."

"Glad to see that I was able to live up to the praise." Naruto replied in an emotionless voice. "Now mind explaining why you were following me?" He may not being showing it but the demon host was ready to fight if he had to.

"I didn't come here to fight you. I'm here to deliver you a message." That only put the blond slightly at ease. "My name is Kimimaro Kaguya and I'm here to give you, Naruto Uzumaki also known as Fox a message from my lord, Orochimaru."

Hearing that name made Naruto tense up again as usually that name meant something that he wouldn't like. _"Also seeing as how he referred to me as both Naruto and Fox it's obvious that snake has told most of his minions about my secret."_ Putting aside that unpleasant thought away for later the blond turned his attention at the present situation. "What kind of message?"

"My lord is offering you the chance to join as a member of Oto." informed Kimimaro. Naruto couldn't hide his surprise as that wasn't something that he expected to hear. "He's been impressed by your abilities and would like to make use of them. That's why he's offering to have you become one of his generals. Imagine the power and resources that would be at your disposal. All you have to do is pledge your loyalty to Lord Orochimaru and it'll be all yours. What is your decision?"

No immediate answer was given by Naruto as he absorbed everything that was said. "Let me get this straight. Orochimaru wants me to join him and in exchange I have to become one of his loyal minions. A tough decision so let me think about it. Hell no." There was absolute resolve in his voice as he answered.

"All the bastard is interested in is what's sealed inside of me. It'll be a cold day in hell before I join the likes of that sadistic man." His words got a reaction as Kimimaru's face became hard and stoic. "Oh, what's the matter? Don't like what I'm saying about your 'lord'? Then how about this: There's no way I would work for that snake loving, sadistic son of a bitch. Does that sound better?"

As with him earlier, Kimimaro didn't give an answer right away. However, by the look on his face he wasn't in favor of what Naruto had said. "If that's your decision then I guess I've got to go with the alternative objective of my mission." When that was said it caused the blond to become cautious. "Lord Orochimaru instructed me that if you decline his offer then I was to make sure that you won't interfere in any of his upcoming plans."

There was no question what was meant by those words. Despite that he was prepared for it, Naruto couldn't help but be a little tentative about it. _"What's the deal here? I don't know why but something about this guy doesn't feel right."_ "Obviously you mean that you're going to try and kill me. First Dosu and now you, what's next?"

"Are you referring to the person that you beat in the preliminary round?" inquired Kimimaro off handedly. "You don't need to worry about him anymore. He's been…taken cared of." No further explanation was needed for what he meant by that.

"They're even willing to kill one of their own as if it's no big deal. That's some mess up shit." Forgetting about that Naruto focused on the fight that was to come. As fast as he could the blond threw a shuriken that was knocked aside as if he was swatting away a fly. It couldn't be seen what he used due to the long sleeves covering his hands but the tip of something white was poking out could be seen. A change of strategy was needed so Naruto went with one of his trademark techniques. "Shadow Clone Jutsu."

Along with Naruto were now a group of clones who were prepared to fight as much as the original. Surrounding the enemy all the spiky haired boys were poised to attack when given the signal. All the while Kimimaro didn't seem the least bit bothered by being outnumbered. "Get him."

In a swarm of orange nad black, the Narutos went in and attack from all sides. However, try as they might, none of them could get a hit in and to make matters worse, the clones were being destroyed one by one as if they were nothing.

Within a few short minutes Kimimaro had been eliminated, leaving only him and the actual Naruto behind. "Is that all you have? I thought that there would be more." Only response from Naruto was what sounded like a growl. "I may as well follow my orders and put an end to this."

In blinding speed, Kimimaro rushed in, fully intending to deliver the killing blow. He was so fast that Naruto couldn't come up with a defense in time as he was stabbed in the gut with some kind of dagger. That would certainly been the end of the spiky haired demon host if he wasn't for him replacing himself with a large log. _"A Substitution Jutsu, a clever move."_

"That was close." acknowledged someone. Not that far away was Naruto only now he had transformed into Fox. "Not only are you strong but you're quick. I can see why Orochimaru wants you on his side. Although I wouldn't mind seeing that man burn in hell as I may hate to admit it, you're impressive."

"Same goes for you as well. Unfortunately I must still kill you for not accepting my Lord's offer." Dropping the weapons that h been using during the fight it allowed Fox to see what it actually was. They were bones with one of the ends being in a point.

"_He actually used bones as weapons? I don't even want to know how he got them."_ Fox wouldn't get what he wanted as a hole appeared on Kimimaro's shoulder. Poking out of the hole was a large bone. Grapping it he started to put it out and when he did it resembled a sword. _"Did he really just do what I think he did?"_ "What the hell? Are you screwed up in the head or something?"

"Don't be mistaken." Kimimaro advised. Right before them the hole on his shoulder began to heal. "This is my bloodline ability. I'm able to manipulate the bones in my body to whatever I wish. I can use them as a weapon or make it dense enough that they'll be harder than steel."

Determination came over Fox's face as he tightened his grip on the kunai that he had in his hand. "Then why don't we test that out?" Going in he tried to get a hit in but like with his clones he wasn't able to do so. Unfortunately the opposite couldn't be said as Kimimaro managed to slash various parts of the long haired demon host's body. Luckily his quick healing was keeping Fox from giving into his injures. That didn't mean that he wasn't hurting as his body was racked with pain.

"_Damn it. I can't get him."_ Fox reluctantly admitted. _"He's more skilled than me and that bone sword of his is doing a number on me. If only I could get him to lose that sword I may stand a better chance. The question is how?"_ An idea suddenly came to him. _"It's risky but it may just work. At least I've got to give it a shot."_

Going ahead with the idea, Fox used a smoke bomb that gave him cover. Not becoming frantic, Kimimaro didn't move from where he stood. He continued to be unmoving until he suddenly placed his sword between him and the attempted kunai strike from Fox. "Was this your plan? Trying a sneak attack in the cover of smoke? That's quite pathetic."

Despite the ambush not being successful, Fox smiled. "Who said that my plan was to sneak attack you?" The boy's words would start to become clearer as Kimimaro caught sight of something. Wrapped around the hilt of Fox's kunai were a few paper bombs. Before anything could be done the bombs went off, catching the two of them in the explosion.

Moments after the explosion Fox stepped out from behind a tree, revealing that the previous one had actually been another shadow clone. _"That had to work. It might not have stopped him but it should've done a lot of damage."_ It almost sounded as though Fox was trying to reassure himself more than anything else. The adrenaline rush would go away and with it all the pain that his body had experienced started to take its toll on him. _"I'm reaching my limit. If this doesn't end soon I'll be completely drained."_

When the smoke started to go away a figure could be seen. To Fox's regret the figure was in fact Kimimaro who was still alive. That didn't mean that he didn't receive any damage as the skin from his right hand to his elbow was gone and only bone remained. Another bonus was that it caused the Kaguya boy to lose his bone sword. From the look on his face it was obvious that Kimimaro was finally becoming angry about how things have gone.

"That was quite a clever move. Creating another clone while under the cover of smoke and have it do the fighting for you. Then you put a few paper bombs on the kunai so that it would be as close to the desired target as possible. Too bad for you it was unsuccessful in putting me down." Before Fox's eyes, the skin that had come off of the Oto shinobi's arm started to come back and when it was over it looked as though it was never been blown off moments ago.

"_You got to be fucking kidding me. He just keeps on coming. If only I was able to do the Rasengan but I'm too exhausted from practicing with it earlier to do a full powered one now."_ The mentioning of his exhaustion brought back how tried Fox had become. _"I've got to end this quick. I'll be completely at his guy's mercy and something tells me that he doesn't have any."_

Running out of ideas, Fox went with the only thing that he could come up with. Grabbing another kunai he rushed in, believing that the bone user hadn't fully recovered from the last attack. That wouldn't be the case as Kimimaro suddenly shot from all of his fingertips and pierced into various parts of his body. Collapsing to the ground from both exhaustion and pain Fox dug his fingers into his left arm that one of the shot objects hit.

When he got a hold of whatever it was he pulled it out. After wiping away the blood he saw that what he had been shot was the bones from his fingertips. He tried to get up but was unable to do so. _"I can't beat him."_ Fox reluctantly accepted. _"No matter what I use he keeps on coming."_ A thought of releasing more of the nine-tailed fox's chakra came and went as subconsciously Fox knew that his body was in no condition to sustain such power.

Just as it seemed as though the end was near but that wouldn't happen. The reason being was that as Kimimaro started to make his way toward him he started coughing violently. It got so bad that he fell to the ground. "No. Not now." Seeping out from between his fingers was blood; apparently it had been coughed up.

"What's going on?" questioned Fox out loud. "Did I hurt him more that I thought?"

"Afraid that's not the case." informed someone else. Walking over was Kabuto Yakushi. He was walking about without any worry as he knew that Fox wasn't going to do anything anytime soon. "It seems as though fortune was on your side. Sadly it won't happen again." Making his way over, Kabuto apparently was going to finish what Kimimaro started.

He wouldn't get a chance though as a blanket of red chakra covered a still immobile Fox. Being cautious Kabuto took another step forward but took a quick step back as some of the chakra swiped at him like a claw. _"Now this is interesting. That chakra is protecting him. Does it have something to do with the demon fox sealed within him?"_

Not wanting to test it, Kabuto went over to Kimimaro, who had stopped coughing but there was still trails of blood flowing from the corners of his mouth. Picking him up the two started to leave but stopped to say a few parting words. "Consider yourself lucky…Naruto." The use of his actual name caused the demon host to twitch as it remained him at how much the people of Oto know about him.

"Next time it'll be different. Be smart and don't get involved in our plans. That is if you wish to live longer." _"At least until _they_ finally decided to come after you."_ Before anything more could be said the traitorous Kabuto and his comrade left, leaving a still fallen Fox behind.

When it was certain that they were truly gone the red chakra vanished. After a few tries the demon host realize that he couldn't get up. Understanding his predicament, Fox took some of his blood and did a series of hand signs. "Summoning Jutsu." Slamming his hand down a small puff of smoke showed and from the smoke was the small yellow toad, Gamatatsu. "Go find…help. Make it fast." Seeing the condition of his summoner kept the toad from being his usual hyperactive self as he quickly left to get help.

Using whatever strength he had left to do the summoning as well as all the injuries he suffered was too much for him. Even with his ability to heal quickly and vast energy reserves what had gone on was too much as he lost consciousness. He was so beaten that Fox transformation went away and returned to being Naruto Uzumaki.

* * *

So, what did you think? I wanted to do something different and having Kimimaro being introduced earlier than he was in the canon and fighting Naruto to the point that he would've been killed if it wasn't for sure luck felt like a good way to do that. As to why I had Dosu killed off was that it would've been more of a bother to have him still around since he basically served his purpose during his match with Naruto. Since that was done with I decided to have him appear one more time before removing him from the story.

Hoped that you found the moment when there was the talk about Tsunade becoming the Hokage after the Chunin Exam amusing. That was purposely done as to what Naruto in the actual series wishes to be. Doesn't mean that this version will be wanting the same thing. As for revealing that Tsunade accepting to be the Hokage this early in the series, it'll lead to something. What that something is, you'll just have to wait and see.

I believe it was mentioned in the author notes in the previous chapter that this'll be the last chapter that'll happen before the actual Chunin Exam matches. Unfortunately, that doesn't appear to be the case since. There is one more chapter before that and I promise, that is the case. Until that chapter is out, see ya.


	33. Visit

Another update and along with it, another chapter. This one follows up shortly after the last one, if you haven't read it then perhaps you should, and at the same time it leads to what's to come. Hopefully that doesn't make you readers decide to skip it over. How knows, you might find what I did amusing.

As for the disclaimer, I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Chapter 33  
Visit

Opening his eyes Naruto saw nothing but blurry images. Slowly his vision started to clear and saw that he was starring up to an unfamiliar white ceiling. "Where am I?"

"So you're finally awake." Turning his head to the side the blond saw that standing around the bed that he was laying in was his godfather Jiraiya, medical specialist Shizune and not that far away was his friend Shikamaru Nara. "Care to explain what happen?" wondered Jiraiya. "We found your messenger toad who led us to where you were. What could've happen that would result in you being beaten, bloody and unconscious?"

Ignoring the leftover pain and stiffness, Naruto moved himself into a sitting position. "Apparently I've caught the attention of some powerful people." For the next hour he explained what had happen with meeting Kimimaro, the offer that was given, the fight between them and the visit by Kabuto. In the end the three of them were surprise.

"I have to say that you're lucky." stated Shizune. She went over to Naruto and wave d a green chakra covered hand over his body for a few moments. "You're in a better condition than when you came in. Probably thanks to your quick healing. But I recommend that you stay in the hospital for another day to be on the safe side. I'll go tell Tsuande what was said here. She should be done when her lesson with Sakura." The young dark haired girl would exit the room leaving the three guys alone.

"Well, she's gone. Now I got a chance to get out of here." Naruto was about to leave but was stopped when Jiraiya forced him back down onto the bed.

"I'm afraid that I've got to agree with the young lady on this. You were pretty beaten up when we found you and even if you heal quicker than others, you're still in no condition to do anything." The bond was going to make an argument but the older man continued. "Just do it, all right. One day here won't kill you." Reluctantly Naruto gave in and did what he was told.

Smiling at his little accomplishment, Jiraiya started to head out of the room as well. "I'll be going now. There are some things that I need to look into. That means that you'll have the apartment to yourself for a few days kid. Don't be having a bunch of wild parties while I'm gone." All he got was a very irritated look from the boy in question. "Make sure that he doesn't try to get away, Shikamaru. Use your shadow possession if you have to."

**00000000**

After leaving the room, Jiraiya dropped his carefree expression and replaced it with one of absolute seriousness. _"This is quite a mess that you've gotten yourself into Naruto. Orochimaru has done something like this before. When he comes across someone who's strong or very talented he'll either try to get them to join him or get rid of them so they won't interfere with him later."_ Remembering his former friend and teammate caused Jiraiya to become slightly down.

"_Orochimaru won't let this drop either. He'll most likely try again another time. Add that to _that group_ coming after him sooner or later; it's no doubt that Naruto's future is going to be troublesome to say at the very least."_ As Jiraiya continued to leave he caught sigh of someone making their way to Naruto's room. Recognizing who it was he smiled as he turned the corner. _"Perhaps the kid won't be as bored as he probably thought he'll be."_

**00000000**

"Man, this is bullshit." complained an annoyed Naruto who didn't have trouble saying it. "I feel fine. I don't see why I have to stay here one more day?"

"Give it a break already." spoke Shikamaru. He apparently was getting fed up with his friend's complaining. "It's not all that bad. Also, the finals are in two days. Resting up would be smarter than doing anything that could cause you to get injured. So just relax and stop being troublesome."

Again Naruto was reluctant but kept whatever complaining that he wanted to say to himself. Neither one knew what to do to pass the time but a light knock at the door was heard. When it opened a friend of the both of them poked their head in and both of them were glad to see Hinata Hyuga. "Ah, so you're here. Did Choji happen to come along with you?" asked Shikamaru about his best friend.

"I'm afraid not." Hinata informed from the doorway. "When he heard he had wanted to come but had to help his father with something. Choji said that he'll come to visit if he's able to." It was around that time that the Huga girl set her sights on Naruto but quickly looked away when the blond notice what she was doing.

"What are you doing standing all the way over there? I'm not contagious or anything like that." That little joke seemed to do the trick as Hinata let out a smile as she walked over to her friends. "How are you feeling Naruto? I heard that you got hurt while you were training."

For a moment Naruto was confused by what she meant until he figured it out. "So that's the excuse that they came up with." Going along with it, the bond reinforced it. "Yeah, I'm fine Hinata. I just over did it is all. Have to be ready when I go against that bastard Neji."

Soon as those words left his mouth Naruto wanted ot smack himself. Despite what he did to her, Neji was still Hinata's cousin and she couldn't wish harm on anyone. "No offense Hinata but that cousin of yours is in need of a beaten. Especially after going over the line in the match you two had."

Though she tried not to, Hinata blushed at her friend's concern for her. "Thank you. But I don't want either of you to get hurt because of some stupid grudge. I'm not worth fighting about."

"You're wrong." Naruto quickly disagreed. "Don't ever think that you're not worth it. Because honestly, I believe that you are." Those words caused the blush that Hinata already had to become even brighter. It also cause Naruto to blush and become a bit bashful as he recognized what he said could be interpretive as.

Throughout that whole interaction, Shikamaru found it somewhat amusing. _"If only those two would just get together than they wouldn't have these awkward moments. It's starting to become a real drag."_

**00000000**

"So Kimimaro failed in his mission?" When informed about what happen in the mission, Orochimaru didn't show any anger or annoyance. That probably was scarier as it was impossible to tell what he was going to react. Any other person would probably fear for their lives but that wasn't the case for Kabuto as he seemed just as unaffected by what was going on.

"I'm afraid that is the case." confirmed Kabuto in an even voice. "Unfortunately his illness has gotten worse that anymore strain could result in his death. This could be a hindrance to our plans. He was to play a significant role."

"There's no need to worry." Again there wasn't any anger behind Orochimaru's words. "Though the loss of Kimimaro is indeed a setback the plan can still be accomplished with the remaining four. As long as there aren't any other obstacles we'll still come out victorious."

"Speaking of obstacles: What should we do about Fox, a.k.a. Naruto Uzumaki? Do we send someone else to take care of him?"

No reply came from the snake sannin as he considered the option. "There's no need for that. While it would be convenient to have him join us or eliminated, he isn't someone to be concern about." Slowly a maniacal smile came over Orochimaru's face and that inhumanly long tongue went across his lips. "Destroying Konoha and getting Sasuke in my grasp is one of our main objectives and nothing shall get in the4 way to accomplish it. "

**00000000**

"Should you really be doing this?" What Shikamaru was referring to was that he was following Naruto as he walked through the hospital hallways. "You could get into trouble if you get caught."

Naruto simply laughed in response. "First off, who says that I'll get caught? Secondly, I needed t move around. I've been in that room all day and it was starting to drive me nuts."

What the blond said wasn't that far from the truth. Hinata's visit would be the first of many that he would have. As she mentioned, Choji showed up a bit later and brought some foot that he somewhat surprisingly didn't snack on already.

Next to visit was Sakura. Even though she said that she was only there because it was on her way home from her training session you could tell that she was glad to see that her friend was all right. After some friendly banter Hinata, Sakura and Choji had to go, leaving Naruto and Shikamaru by themselves again. "Besides Shikamaru, I was told to say another day in the hospital; they never said that I had to say in my room. Call it a loophole to their rule."

"That's more of a technicality." stated Shikamaru. He couldn't help but to smirk at his friend's thinking since he wasn't actually going against the other's request. "Do what you want. Just don't get me involved if you get into trouble."

"Don't worry I won't." Naruto casually said. They continued walking around when he suddenly felt something. _"I know this feeling. It's close."_ Without saying a word he took off to where the feeling was coming from, ignoring Shikamaru who was following him. _"Why is he here? What could he be after?"_

"_**Who knows."**_ replied Kyuubi. Somewhat surprising since the fox demon usual kept quiet when its host was asking himself questions. _**"But be on your guard brat. Remember who he is and how dangerous he is."**_ For some reason hearing the fox demon say made Naruto even more worried.

**00000000**

In another part of the hospital was the medical leave genin, Rock Lee. Everything seemed peaceful but as the old saying goes: Appearances can be deceiving. The reason being was that someone had entered the room. That someone wasn't a person that you could call friendly as it was the person was Gaara, the one who had caused Lee to be in the hospital to begin with.

Walking over to the medical bed a strange expression was on the Suna demon host's face. It was as though he was having a mental struggle with himself. As that was going on the sand that was in Gaara's gourd came out and started to wrap itself around Lee's body. During all of this the busy eyebrow boy was left unaware. Reason being that he was still heavily sedated from the major surgery that he recently had.

Death would certainly have come to Lee as all that was left was for the Suna shinobi to have his sand to crush him. Before Gaara could do what he attended to do his body was frozen and no matter what he tried he couldn't get himself to move. Following that, someone came in and punched him in the hard in the case to the point that it made his head turn.

"What the fuck do you think you're doing?!" demanded an angry Naruto. He was ready to attack again if needed.

"Hey, calm down Naruto." exclaimed Shikamaru. It had taken the Nara a few seconds to realize what was happening and right away stepped in. Stretching his shadow it connected with Gaara's. While it may of stop Lee's death from happening there were drawbacks for what he did. "Remember my shadow is connected with his. Whatever happens to him the same happens to me."

That helped to calm Naruto, if only a little. "Sorry Shikamaru? But can you blame me?" Silence was all that he got. "Now, I'll ask again. What do you think you're doing? You already beat Lee in your guys' match. What reason could you have for trying to kill him?"

Once getting over the surprise tat what happen, Gaara had returned to his usual impassive demeanor. . "Because I felt like it." How he said such a thing as though it was the most common thing in the world shocked and angered Naruto and Shikamaru. "I wanted to prove my existence and what better way than end the life of his weakling?"

"And you think that we're going to stand back and let you do that?" questioned Naruto. Amazingly the blond was able to keep himself as calm as he had. "If you did that you're sadly mistaken."

"_This isn't good."_ Shikamaru quickly apprehended. _"My shadow possession won't last much longer. Once that happens we'll be in trouble. It'll be a disaster if Naruto and him were to fight each other here. Need to think of something quick before that happens."_

Unfortunately Shikamaru couldn't think fast enough as Gaara was able to free himself from the shadow hold. Once freed his sand became alive again and was ready to attack. "You were fools to get in my way. The two of you will also help to prove my existence."

What happen next was a complete surprise. Before Gaara could do anything, a hand wrapped itself around his throat. The person who did that was Naruto Uzumaki and the expression on his face was one of absolute determination. "Not so fast."

The move was so sudden that Gaara's sand defense didn't stop Naruto but had wrapped itself around his arm and was holding it tightly enough that the arm was close to breaking. "Have you forgotten what I told you before Gaara?" Absolute anger was in every word that was said. "I believe I warned ou that if you went after any of my friends I would kill you. Apparently you didn't take me seriously. That was a big mistake."

It literally became a power struggle between the two demon vessels to gain the advantage over the other. Neither one was willing to back down from the other as it came down between the sand trying to crush Naruto's arm and the hand that was getting tighter on Gaara's neck. It looked as though things were going to get worse before it would be over if not for something intervening.

"That's enough." At the doorway of the room was Maito Gai who had an expression that couldn't really be described. "Save it for the finals. If you continue you'll be disqualified from the finals."

After what felt like eternity both Naruto and Gaara release their holds on each other. Not saying a word the redhead shinobi started to leave. "I'll kill you later." With that he left. Only when he was gone did the atmosphere in the room start to ease up.

Shikamaru couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief. "That was intense. If that's a preview of what's to come then I can only imagine if these two were to fight each other without restriction. "Thinking of what could happen he failed to notice Naruto slightly grabbing the arm that the sand had a hold of.

**00000000**

"Man, this is what I needed." What Naruto meant by that was that he was going through Konoha as Fox. It was night and he thought that it would be a good way to relax from his little confrontation with Gaara earlier. He wasn't necessarily looking for any trouble as it was just a way to clear his head. Fox was going to call it a night when something caught his eye.

Standing on top of one of the rooftops was a single ANBU Black Op. Even though he thought that he shouldn't but his curiosity got the better of Fox as he stopped on the same rooftop. Despite only seeing one of them it didn't mean there wasn't anymore hiding somewhere. ANBU were known for being able to completely hide their presence from others. On closer exception he noticed something else.

"I remember you. You're the one that was in charge of the ANBU team that was after Mizuki and the Idiot Brothers. Tenshi I believe your name was."

"The name's Tenzou." corrected the ANBU. "Wish to thank you for your assistance in that mission. Notwithstanding that your involvement wasn't included in the official report." While he may have been wearing a mask you could somehow tell that Tenzou was being honest.

"That's beside the point however. I was sent here to find you. There's someone who wishes to speak to you." Leaping off of the rooftop Tenzou headed off to some unknown location. Again Fox wasn't sure about following but curiosity got to him again as he hurried to catch up to the masked shinobi.

For the next few minutes it was like a game of follow the leader as Tenzou led Fox to somewhere. As for the reason, who knows? Finally the two stopped when they reached the Hokage Monument and before anything could be said someone else spoke up. "Ah, so you did show up." From the shadows came Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Third Hokage.

"Well now, this is unexpected. The Hokage himself wants to see me." Although Fox was trying to act not all that impress, which was somewhat hard to do as this was something that he didn't expect. That didn't mean that he didn't show any respect as he did a casual bow to the leader of Konoha. "What do I owe the honor to? Not planning to have more ANBY try to capture me are you?"

To his credit the Hokage just chuckled as he shook his head. "No. You don't have to worry about an ambush. I'm here to ask for a request." That got the complete attention of demon host. "First off, what do you know about someone by the name of Orochimaru?"

"What's there to say that isn't publicly known? Formerly a Konoha shinobi and has a summoning contract with snakes. Was a member of the Three Sannin that included Jiraiya and Tsunade and you, Sarutobi were the team leader. Would then become a missing shinobi after deserting the village and has committed many crimes in all the nations that are too many to list."

There were a few moments before Fox continued with his response. "That's what is known to the public but there's more. The reason why Orochimaru deserted was because he was caught experimenting on people. Personally speaking, I think that he's a no good sadistic son of a bitch who should be taken cared of…permanently." There was complete seriousness in the last words that Fox said as he had no trouble expressing his hatred for the snake man. "I had a run in with him once. Got a few hits in before he knocked me out."

"To have fought the likes of Orochimaru and survive says something about you." Becoming serious that most Hokages were known for, the Third returned to why the meeting was happening. "For the reason wanting to meet, it's been discovered that Orochimaru has become the leader of Oto and plans to attack during the finals of the Chunin Exam. I'm hoping that you'd lend your assistance in defending against the possible invasion. Will you become an official shinobi of Konoha?"

No answer came from Fox for a moment as he was caught off guard by what was asked. "Now isn't this a surprise? The actual Hokage is asking me to officially become a shinobi. I'm touched." Playing it up, he wiped away a fake tear. "How can I be sure that I won't betray you later on?"

"On more than one occasion you've helped this village. Whether that was to rescue me from bandits, proving the innocence of a jonin or helping to capture three dangerous runaway criminals and asking for nothing in return." retold Sarutobi of some of the deeds that Fox had done in the past. Letting a tired breath he glanced over to the villager before him. "My time as Hokage is drawing to a close and before my successor takes over I want to protect Konoha with every bit of my being. Will you accept my proposal to join us?"

Like with the Hokage, Fox became serious. "To be honest, I'm grateful for the offer but I must decline. I prefer to do things on my own without restrictions." That wasn't really a lie since while he may do things while with his team, he sometimes preferred to do things his own way.

"You don't have to worry though, I'll help if necessary. Like you, I want to protect this village. Besides, I think there are those in high standings who don't want me to have an official connection with Konoha." Fox was of courser referring to the times that his involvements in previous village issues were left out of official documents.

"Not that all surprising though. They apparently don't it known that Konoha is getting help from 'outside sources'. So just consider me as an 'additional reinforcement' and I'll do my part when the time comes. It's getting late and I think it's time to call it a night. See you later." With a slight bow to the Third Hokage and Tenzou, who had remained quiet during the whole discussion, Fox left the Hokage Monument. He took an alternative route home in the hopes that it would help prevent anyone trying to follow him.

From the top of the monument, Sarutobi watched as the boy leave while holding in a smile. _"He's so like them that it's amazing. No doubt he'll be an incredible as time goes by."_ "I must thank you Tenzou. You didn't have to do this."

"No need for thanks Hokage. I'm honored to serve you in anyway I can." Tenzou reminded. "I'm hoping that you're not wrong in putting such faith in Fox."

"I believe we don't have to worry about him. We should head back before anyone becomes suspicious." Without saying another word both the Hokahe and ANBU member disappeared.

* * *

I hope that you guys like how I did the confrontaiton between Naruto and Gaara. I didn't want to do anything too over the top since I got plans for later on in the story. Probably also surprising that I had Naruto as Fox having a conversation with the Third Hokage. I wanted to do something to help establish the connection between the characters before what's to come in the story later.

The next chapter is of course going to be the final round of the Chunin Exam and I hope that I do a good enough job in tha tparticular part of the story. When I'll have it out, it'll be around the end of the month. Shoudn't be surprise since I've been doing it for a while but I'm now considering to update this story at the beginning _and_ end of the month. So, until next time, see ya.


	34. Grudge

Finally the finals to the Chunin Exam is here. That means the matches for the finals are going to happen. Not to waste anymore time, here you go. As for the disclaimer, I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Chapter 34:  
Grudge

The moment had finally arrived. It was what people have been waiting for a month for. It was the start of the Chunin Exam finals. Unlike with the preliminaries, there was a much larger crowd who came to watch. Standing there were the genins that were there to fight before them. Most of them were there but there was an exception. That was Sasuke Uchiha.

Scattered among those watching were those who were eliminated in the preliminary round. One of those eliminated competitors was Sakura Haruno. She wasn't paying attention what was going on in the battlefield as she was in deep thought as she was concerned at why Sasuke wasn't there. _"Why would Sasuke leave the hospital without notice?"_ Recalling to what was said by Orochimaru as he left her team only worried her even more.

"Come on Sakura. Cheer up." suggested Ino who was seating beside her depress friend. "Sasuke might not be here but Naruto's match is coming up. So why not trying to cheer for your other friend?" Ino's words seem to do the trick as it got Sakura out of the funk that she was getting in.

**00000000**

"_Where the hell is that bastard?"_ Unaware to Sakura but her other teammate was having similar thoughts going through his head. _"Sasuke might be a pain in the ass but there's no way that he would miss this. He would've dragged his body here if he had to."_

After told the rules of the finals the proctor decided to get things started. "The first match is between Naruto Uzumaki and Neji Hyuga. Everyone else go to waiting room for your turn." Following the instructions the five other genin left the fighting area. For those watching they saw the match as foregone conclusion as the majority figured that the Hyuga boy was going to lose the match.

As for the two fighters, the expressions on their faces were complete opposites. While Neji appeared to be supremely confident, Naruto had a look of complete determination. "It seems like you have something to say. Why don't you not just say it already?"

"What's the point?" Naruto answered solemnly. "It would just be a waste of time talking. I prefer to just beat it into you. Maybe then you'll finally open your eyes." There wasn't any sign of doubt in the boy's words and his eyes didn't waver.

Neji saw this. Without a word he opened his Byakugan and went into the Jyuken fighting stance. "If that's what you wish, so be it. It'll be amusing to see you finally except reality."

"Shut up. Let's just fight already." While Naruto was being calm on the outside, he was trying to figure of what to do. _"All right, think clearly. I've fought against the gentle fist several times while sparring with Hinata but honestly the level between her and Neji are completely different. I can't risk fighting him close range. Then I guess I'll go with this plan."_

"Shadow Clone Jutsu." On either side of Naruto were two clones, making it all together five Narutos. Surrounding Neji they prepared to attack. All the while the Hyuga didn't show much concern of being outnumbered. _"Those eyes may be able to see all around him but I might get lucky and land a blow. Either that or I can judge his skills further."_

Giving the signal the four clones went on the attack. As expected, all of the attacks that the clones tried to use were blocked or evaded. In short order all of them were destroyed, leaving only the original Naruto behind. _"Man, I knew that he was good but this is unreal."_

"It's as I expected." voiced Neji. He didn't even seem the least bit winded from the little scuffle that that he just went through. "With your level of skill it's no way that you can deny what destiny has intended for you."

"Destiny you say? You keep spouting about our lives already being determined by destiny but that's just a bunch of bullshit. We decide whether we improve or not." A glare came over the blond haired boy's face. "Hinata proved it when she decided to become stronger than she once was."

"Yes and look what happen to here." Neji shot back. "She saw that no matter how much you wish to change, there's no way for a person to change their fate. So go ahead and just give up. No point in continuing in a match that you have no chance of winning."

Surprisingly, the glare disappeared from Naruto's face and a small smile to its place. "That's what you think? Then let's find out, shall we?" Once again he created four shadow clones and they circled around their opponent.

"You're going for the same trick? This didn't work the first time so why go for it again?" Neji sounded almost disappointed as things were becoming tiresome. _"I thought that you would've at least put up more of a challenge than this."_

Those words only seemed to cause the smile on Naruto's face to become even bigger. "Now, who said anything about using the same trick as before?" That strange response only confused Neji as he wondered what the spiky blond had planned.

**00000000**

"What does that idiot think he's doing?" In the audience was Kiba Inuzuka. Like everyone else he was there to see the matches, specifically the one that involved his teammate, Shino but that match wouldn't happen until later. "Does he even realize that all that's doing is wasting his chakra?" No response was given, not like he was expecting one.

Sitting beside the outspoken was his other teammate, Hinata Hyuga. She was also there to lend moral support for Shino but also do the same for her two other friends' matches. Those two being Naruto and Shikamaru. Right now though she was having problems with the match that was going on as she didn't know what she should do. Even though she was badly beaten by him, Neji was still her cousin and didn't want to see him get hurt. However, she wanted the same thing for Naruto, someone that she cared for deeply.

No matter how much she wished for it she knew that there wasn't no way that one of them would come out of the match without some kind of injury. Hinata could only hope that when it was all over that it would at least somewhat ease some of the hostility that was between them. _"Please. All I'm asking is for no one to get really hurt."_

**00000000**

"What are you blabbing about? You should know already know that no matter what you try you'll never be able to hit me." informed Neji. How he said it made it sound as though it was already a given.

"Then let's find out." Putting their hands together the five Narutos gathered chakra in-between them. "Flash Fare." Like with the preliminaries, he used the jutsu that created an intense light. As with his preliminary match, it caused his opponent to be blinded. Add to the fact that it came from the shadow clones as well it only made the light brighter that it actually covered the area for a few seconds.

"Now let's see if I'm able to hit you when you can't even see anything." Naruto's words didn't get through to Neji as he was trying to regain his vision but found it futile. In a unspoken unison three of the Narutos hit consecutive kicks that sent the Hyuga into the air and was followed by one of the other two jumped higher and drove Neji back to the ground with an axe kick.

"You take so much pride of that Byakugan ability of yours. But it proved to be your Achilles' heel since it cause you to receive the Flash Flare from all around you." enlightened one of the Narutos. Nothing was said in retort as Neji remained facedown on the ground, not moving. "Quit faking. We both know that something like that won't keep you down."

Just as Naruto has figured, the branch member of the Hyuga member got to his feet. It was then that the damage that the Uzumaki Barrage did became evident. Under Neji's right eye was a small cut that was deep enough that a small trial of blood to come out. Creative move but it was for not." He stopped for a moment to spit out a bloody spit. "In the end it would matter as you'll end up losing like Hinata. Destiny has already decided it."

"Watch what you say Neji Hyuga." Naruto warned with an edge to his voice. "Have you forgotten what happen last time that you put down Hinata? I was close to putting a kunai into a chest before I was stopped. There wouldn't be anyone to stop me if I decided to try it again." Taking a deep breath Naruto let it out to calm down. "Why do you have such a problem with the main members of your family?" A possible reason came to the blond.

"Could it have something to do with what happen to your daddy?" That question cause a immediate reaction as Neji was shocked at what was said. "Oh yes. I've known for a while. Hinata gave me a brief explanation about what happen. There were a few blanks managed to get the entire story. Honestly, if that's your excuse then your priorities are messed up."

That statement seemed to anger Neji more than anything before. "How can you say such a thing? If you actually knew what happened then you wouldn't say such an idiotic thing." In the audience was the leader of the Hyuga family, Hiashi who had his head lowered in regret.

"How about before you start bitching about things you get your facts straight?" Naruto shot back. "It doesn't matter. You can think about it after the match is over. That'll be a matter of moments." As if following a silent command the five Narutos charged in at the same time. Try as they might none of the Narutos couldn't land a blow. _"Damn it. I can't get a hit on him. That means that I can't use the Rasengan since I can only maintain it for about a minute. _I've got to think of something._"_

All of once the Narutos attack again but they were stopped but in another way. Spinning around, Neji released chakra outward and shielded him. There was enough rotation behind it that it caused all five Narutos to be pushed away. Slowly the Hyuga boy stopped with his surprise move. "Did you actually think that you could win?" The attack seemed to do some damage as it caused one of the shadow clones to be destroyed. "It was only due to your little trick that you were able to attack me like you did."

No reply came from Naruto as he tried to recover from the unexpected attack. It proved to be difficult as one by one the other shadow clones disappeared as well until only one Naruto was left and was someone who could hardly remain standing. "You said something about our match coming to an end. However, I'll continue while you remain where you are. Defeated and hopefully, finally understand that destiny doesn't change. No matter how hard you try."

Unexpectedly, a smile came over Naruto's face. Before it could be asked what that was about, he went away in a cloud of smoke. _"All of them were clones? Where's the original one?"_ Even with the Byakugan it was impossible to tell where the blond could be. Suddenly bursting the ground by Neji's was Naruto who used the surprise to his advantage to get in an uppercut that knocked the Hyuga down.

"Surprised you, didn't I?" questioned Naruto. "Probably didn't expect me to use Flash Flare as not only an offensive move but also as a diversion." A smirk was on the spiky haired boy's face and it only grew as he continued to explain. "All I had to do was wait until you let your guard down and attack you from below. I'd hoped that it would've knocked you out but unfortunately you're tougher than I thought. Guess I'll have to beat you up some more."

Getting back to his feet Neji seemed to have a strange look on his face. It was somewhere between anger and certainty. "A creative plan I'll admit. However, you've forgotten one important thing. You're within range of my Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms attack." In lightening speed, Neji reached Naruto and in quick succession hit sixty-four hits on various parts of his opponent's body. "I have hit sixty-four of your chakra points. You won't be able to stand, let alone use any chakra. Now say down and accept your fate."

On the ground, with his arms clutching his body, Naruto tried to ignore the pain and to get to his feet. _"Man, my whole body feels like hell. I can hardly think straight because of the pain."_ All of a sudden, images of how hard Hinata and Lee fought in their matches despite how hurt they were flashed in his head. With renewed determination Naruto slowly got back to his feet, to the amazement of everyone watching. "Are you getting ahead of yourself? This match is far from over."

**00000000**

"I'll give him credit, the boy is determined." acknowledged Tsunade. Watching from an area that was secluded from most of the audience was the legendary medical specialist. She was in the company of her first apprentice. "Even with the odds seemingly against he's not willing to give up. You don't find many people like in this time of day."

"Do you think that he has a chance of winning?" asked Shizune who was the only other person with the older woman. "His chakra points are blocked and can barely stand. If he were to become Fox he would have a better chance of winning."

"Perhaps but he won't do it." stated Tsunade. "He's not going to revealthat secret in front of all these people. Also, look at him. There's more to Naruto than what has been shown." Nothing was said by Shizune as she watched to see if her teacher was right.

**00000000**

"This has started to become pathetic." The annoyance was evident in how Neji was reacting to how things had transpired. "There's no point for you to continue. No matter how much you try you'll never beat, nor more than you can't change destiny."

"How about you cut the crap?" exclaimed Naruto in between gasp of breath. He clearly was still feeling pain from his chakra being sealed. "You keep spewing out destiny this and destiny that but you don't believe it." With each word that the boy spoke he became even more resolved.

"Hinata, someone who's considered weak by even her own family has endlessly worked hard to improve herself. Let you beat her down mercilessly. Are you, a part of the branch family supposed to help protect the main family? In your own way aren't you trying defy destiny?" Only reaction that came from Neji was a slight twitch to his eye.

"It's clear that all the talk about destiny is something for you to hide behind. If you have problems with how the Hyuga family is then try to fix it instead of bitching about it." Ignoring the as much as pain that he could, Naruto put his hands together and tried to bring out his blocked chakra. _"Shit. None of my chakra is coming out. My chakra points are still blocked. I've got to think of something."_

"_**What a fool you are."**_ voiced someone in the Naruto's head. Immediately he knew that it belonged to the fox spirit, Kyuubi. _**"Care for some advice?"**_

"_Can this wait? I'm busy trying to come up with a strategy."_ He wasn't in the mood to hear demonic tenant jabber on how pathetic humans were as while Naruto tried to think of a plan he kept an eye on Neji who could've attack at any time.

"_**Why do you think I'm trying to tell you?"**_ Kyuubi retorted in annoyance. _**"Use some of my chakra to 'unblock' your chakra points so you can fight."**_ All that was given as a response was hesitation. _**"Not enough to allow yourself to become Fox. Only enough so you can continue this fight. There isn't much of an alternative in the situation."**_ As much as Naruto hated to admit it, what the fox was speaking truth. _**"Do you want my help or not?"**_

"_Fine."_ Naruto reluctantly agreed. _"But if you try to do anything shady I'll put a stop to it. I'd rather lose than let you have a chance to run wild."_ Though he was trying to sound reprimanding, Naruto was a bit uneasy.

"_**Don't worry. I won't try something like that. Especially here, since it would be bothersome to deal with all of the people here."**_ promise Kyuubi which was somewhat weird to hear from a demonic fox. Strangely, it helped to put Naruto at ease.

"Its pointless." remarked Neji who failed to notice what was going on. "You won't be able to use any chakra for quite some time. Unfortunately for you, it'll be over by the time that happens."

As if to challenge his boasting a burst of chakra started to rush through Naruto's body. Thanks to the Byakugan, Neji could see his opponent's chakra flowing throughout his body. _"How is this possible? His chakra points were blocked. He can't possibly use any chakra. What is he?"_ In the audience the people watching were wondering the same thing.

During all of this Naruto was calm and collective. "Let's pick up where you left off, shall we?" Right before everyone the spiky haired boy disappeared. It only thanks to having his Byakugan activated that Neji was able to avoid Naruto's attempted attack, if by inches. He tried to respond with an attack of his own but his opponent got out of harm's way.

"You prefer close combat, don't you?" Reaching into his weapon's pouch he pulled out a kunai. "Let's see how good you are." Using the same kind of speed that he had before, Naruto rushed straight for Neji. Thinking quickly the Hyuga boy once again did a Heavenly Spin. When the two of them collided it resulted in an explosion that caused both of them to be thrown back. As the smoke covered the fighting stage everyone watching was wondering what happen to the two genin.

When the smoke started to disappear there was two craters and inside both of them was the two competitors. It was about another few moments until one of them began to emerge from one of the craters. Walking slowly over to the other crater was a very battered and worn out Neji Hyuga as he stared down to a motionless Naruto. "It's just as thought. You had no chance of winning."

Suddenly, Naruto's body started to be covered in a white light. A second later he exploded in a giant explosion. The result being that it made Neji hit the ground and having trouble getting up. To add to the confusion someone emerge from underneath the ground. Getting to his feet was an equally battered and exhausted Naruto. "What do you know? I got you."

"What was that?" Neji managed to get out. He tried to get back up but wasn't able to. "That wasn't like any of the shadow clone that you usually do."

"You're right. That was something different." confirmed Naruto. Even with his well known history of having large amount of stamina he was close to reaching his breaking point. "It was something that I thought about for a while. It's like a regular shadow clone except that I can make it explode whenever I want. However, it takes a lot of chakra to do and I can only do one or two at a time. Means I can use recklessly. I had to wait for the right time to even try that jutsu and you know the rest of the story. I could've made it strong enough to kill you but that would upset Hinata and I prefer not to do that to her."

Slowly it seemed like Naruto had finally started to regain some of his strength as he became more relaxed. "I've said it before but I'll say it again. If you want to change your 'destiny', then go for it. Only when you stand back and do nothing, do you truly give into 'destiny'. Instead of complaining about how you can't change destiny try to actually do it. Because I believe that you're able to do so."

So focus on his own version of words of advice, Naruto briefly forgot that his and Neji's fight was still going on. It was only when the proctor spoke up did he remember what was going on. "Winner of the match: Naruto Uzumaki."

* * *

Well, there you go. I hoped that the long awaited match between Naruto and Neji was worth the wait. Of course, I know that there were some similarities between this version and the one that happen in the canon. One thing I didn't want to do was directly copy how the fight ended. That of course is one of the reasons why I decided to have Naruto use exploding shadow clones.

Just so you know, I decided a long time ago to have Naruto learn that particular version of the shadow clone jutsu. However, like with when he first learned how to do shadow clones, he'll have a limit to them but I'll find ways to get around that. The next chapter will be out early next month and I hope you'll enjoy it. Until then, see ya.


	35. Alter

First off, I want to say that I hope that everyone had a happy 4th of July, for those who do celebrate it. Now with that outof the way, it's onto the newest chapter to this story. You may find the title of the chapter strange but you'll likely to understand it as you read it. As for the disclaimer, I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Chapter 35:  
Alter

"Winner of the match: Naruto Uzumaki." Following that announcement a wave of applause was heard as all those viewing showed their appreciation. Looking about Naruto could hear praise and admiration for what they just saw.

Unable to help himself, Naruto started to go about as he gave thanks which some found surprising since it was thought that he was too exhausted to move around excitedly. "Thank you, thank you. You're too kind." It was during this time that the medics came in and stretcher Neji out who still couldn't get back to his feet.

"_Its amazing."_ thought Sakura as she watched _"Naruto continues to get stronger all the time."_ There wasn't resentment in her thoughts. If anything, it was envy. _"Makes me kind of jealous in a way to see how both he and Sasuke seemingly get stronger all the time. I've got to train myself even harder if I want to keep up with them."_

"What's the matter Sakura?" Ino asked as she saw the look on her friend's face. "Aren't you happy about Naruto winning?"

"It's nothing, Ino." reassured Sakura. "I was just thinking of something." To the girl's relief that was enough for Ino as dropped the subject.

**00000000**

"Wow. Naruto actually won." There was genuine surprise to Shizune's words. Regrettably she silently was one of those people who thought that the blond wasn't going to win after having his chakra points blocked. "You could somewhat consider as an upset."

"I'll say." agreed Tsunade. She tried to deny it but she was also surprise by what happened. "It makes me regret for not putting some money on this match. I could've made a fortune." Shizune could only lower her head at her mentor's words.

**00000000**

"_What a great way to start the exams."_ thought the Third Hokage to himself. _"I wonder how Naruto was able to do what he did."_Unaware to Sarutobi was that the kage of Suna, the Kazekage seemed very interested look in his eyes but the reason for it was a different reason than his fellow kage.

**00000000**

"Ha, so the idiot has some skill after all." Kankuro snidely commented. In the area that they were told to go to was five of the sixth remaining genin who still hadn't fought let. "He should count himself lucky that he had assistance or he would've surely have lost."

"Are you that blind?" asked Shikamaru in a somewhat lazy tone. "Naruto didn't use any 'additional support' during the match except to reopen his chakra points. If you opened your eyes you may have realize this." Not that far away the sound of Temari trying to hold in a fit of laughter could be heard.

Before a fight could actually start, Naruto finally arrived to the waiting room and when he did the cheerfulness that he had earlier faded slightly as it was time to be serious again. Walking over he stood next to Shikamaru and leaned against the railing. "Man that was fun." There was a hint of sarcasm in Naruto's words but a touch of humor as well. "Hopefully you guys can follow that up."

"That's bold words." voiced Shino who was standing near the other Konoha genin. "Because it looked as though you were close to losing more than once." The unexpected jab came as such a surprise that it nearly made the spiky haired blond to nearly fall over the railing and some of the others to laugh.

Composing himself, Naruto did a quick once over the entire waiting area and saw that Sasuke was still missing. _"What's taking him so long? Whatever reasons that he could have had to be missing from the opening moments but he should've been here by now."_ Glancing from the corner of his eye he saw that Gaara was very eager for the match. _"Wherever Sasuke is he better hurry before it's too late. If not he'll be disqualified."_

The anticipation for a match between the sole remaining member of the Uchiha family and the son of the Kazekage seemed to be high as the audience was starting to getting angry about having to wait for the what was next as it clearly seemed to be the match that most of the people there wanted to see.

Frustration would continue to grow for the next couple of minutes and the constant waiting wasn't going well with Gaara who was becoming more irritated by waiting. It wasn't until the proctor spoke up that an explanation was given. "Listen up everyone. One of the contestants for the next scheduled match isn't here. As a result we'll push that match back." That only helped to settle the audience down since it meant that they would have to wait even longer to see the match between Gaara and Sasuke. "Now, let's go ahead with the next match between Shino Aburame and Kankuro."

The announcement of the switching of match positions didn't seem to bother Shino but for some reason Kankuro wasn't in favor of the decision. "You're not thinking about backing out, are you?" Naruto asked in a taunting manner. "Could it because you're afraid of going against Shino?"

"That's probably the reason." Shikamaru added with the taunting. He had an idea what Naruto was doing with the taunting and decided to go along with it. _"Also, I won't have my match for a while longer."_ "The more time is wasted for the next two matches than better the chance for Sasuke to arrive to have his. You wouldn't want to deprive your brother from having a match against someone he really wants to fight, do you?"

Throughout the two pronged taunting, Kankuro became more annoyed by the second. _"Damn. I don't know what's worse. That their taunting is getting to me or that they know that it's getting to me."_ Looking to his siblings/teammates he saw that Temari was like him as a wrench was thrown into their plan. As for Gaara, he could care less about the plans being altered but he was clearly annoyed that he still hadn't had his match with one of the two people that he wanted to fight the most.

"_I would prefer to not fight and reveal my puppet Crow's secrets but if I was to forfeit and Sasuke doesn't show up then the plan is ruined and Gaara could go berserk. Talk about a tough choice to make."_ With a bit of reluctance Kankuro started to make his way to the arena. Not long after Shino would follow him. Neither of them even saw the small smirks that Shikamaru and Naruto had for accomplishing what they had set out to do. Even Temari couldn't help but laugh to herself at how easy her brother was tricked.

**00000000**

"Both contestants ready?" Getting only nods for confirmation the proctor signaled for the match to start. "Begin!"

Shino would be the first to act as he had his bugs come out and swarm around him. Remembering what happened to Misumi during his preliminary match against the bug user, Kankuro became somewhat cautious. Though he didn't want to do it he had no choice but to remove the wrappings and positioned Crow to attack. _"I've got to be careful. Those bugs of his could come at me from any direction. One mistake and that'll be it. Best thing to do is to hit him quick and hard before he has the chance to advantage."_

Following with the line of thinking Kankuro sent Crow in while at the same having it avoid much of the bugs as possible. A blade extended from its arm but before it could make contact Shino moved out of harm's way. As he avoided the attempted attacks he noticed something about the blade. _"That blade has poison on it. There's probably enough to make me unconscious…or worse." _While he thought about it, that same blade shot out and stabbed him in the gut.

Or so it seemed because Shino's body started to come apart and revealed to be a bunch of insects. Kankuro's surprise would be short lived as he had to do some quick evading as the real Shino tried to attack from behind. "Clever. You created a clone with your insects so you could attack me from behind."

"You're jutsu style is suitable for long distance fighting. Therefore, it's expected that you're not that good when it comes to close combat." Shino surmised. "Do to you needing to concentrate on operating your puppet it'll leave you wide open for an attack."

"So you've figured out the weakness of my jutsu style." Kankuro acknowledged his opponent's assessment. "However, I'll show you how a true puppet master fights." What followed next was one of Crow's arms opening up and shooting was some kind of smoke bomb that consumed Shino in a cloud that was more than just smoke.

"_This gas is poisonous. I mustn't breathe any of it in."_ Coming out of the smoke cloud Shino tried to find his opponent couldn't find him or his puppet. _"He must be preparing for some kind of attack but what?"_ He wouldn't have to wait long as the Crow puppet tried to attack from behind. Fortunately for him Shino was able to avoid the majority of the attack but was caught with a glancing blow to his arm. _"My movements are slower than they should. I guess that I breathed in some of the poison."_

From his hiding spot, Kankuro was pleased to see how things have gone. "Excellent. He's moving slower than before. I'll just take my time and take him down bit by bit." Sending his commands through the chakra strings his puppet continued to attack Shino. To his credit, the bug user was able to avoid the more serious attacks but would still receive some damage here and there.

When it looked as though was close at hand stopped abruptly. No matter what he tried Kankuro couldn't get his puppet to move. _"What's the deal? Why doesn't Crow move?"_ The answer to that would be discovered as a bunch of insects stated to move about on the puppet. _"Damn it. He's used those bugs of his to jam up the joints of Crow. At the moment the puppet is just like a statue."_ Things would only get worse as the insects started to crawl on the chakra strings that connected Crow to Kankuro.

Understanding what that meant the puppet master cut off the chakra strings, thereby keeping his position hidden. When he saw this, Shino thought that the advantage was following on his side. That would be the case however as suddenly as Crow's head detached from the body and made its way towards him. As it did the mouth opened and a large spike that was heavily coated in poison revealed itself.

The move unexpected and quick that Shino didn't have time to move out of the way as the spike pierced him in the heart. It would certainly be the end of the Aburame boy, or so it appeared to be. Slowly the silent bug user's body started to come apart, revealing that it was just another bug clone. Kankuro's surprise wouldn't last long as he felt a strange sensation going up his body. Looking down he saw that it was more insects.

He frantically tried to get the bugs off him but for whatever ones that came off more would replace them. "But how did you find me? I kept myself completely hidden." Kakkuro's attempts of getting rid of the insects were starting to slow down as he started to feel his strength going away.

"That's true." acknowledged Shino who showed himself from behind a tree. "However, the males of those particular insects are able to track down the female of their species." That only caused even more questions so he continued with his explanation. "When I attacked you earlier in the match I managed to place a female insect on you. Soon those my insects will drain you of all of your chakra and won't stop until they do so."

With another attempted to free himself Kankuro tried to get the bugs on him but it were just futile tries as in the end the Suna shinobi was no longer to fight back. Before anything fatal could actually happen, the insects left their 'fest' and returned to their host.

"Be thankful that I prefer to not have your life end here. Nonetheless, you'll be too weak to do anything for a time." Once all of the insects returned to Shino it appeared as though announcement of his victory. Before that could happen though the Aburame boy started to lose his footing. _"I guess the poison is having more of an affect than I thought."_ No longer being able to stand, Shino fell to the ground as well and showed no sign of getting up.

"Both competitors are unable to continue. This match is declared a no contest. Therefore, no one advances." declared the proctor. The announcement got a mixed reaction as some people thought that it was bad way to end what was a good match or that Shino should've been declared the winner. In the end there was nothing that could've been done about it as the decision was final.

**00000000**

"Man, that's bullshit." Like with some of the people in the audience, Naruto wasn't in favor of previous match's decision. "Shino obviously should've won. A double elimination is a load of shit."

"Technically the right call was made." voiced Shikamaru. "Before the proctor could make the announcement Shino collapsed and wasn't able to continue. Therefore, a double elimination was the only decision that could be made." Although there was logic behind his words, the shadow user wasn't in favor on how the last match ended. "What a drag though. That means if I win my match I'll have to face either you, Sasuke or Gaara in the final match. Maybe I should just forfeit and skip all the hassle."

"Come on. Don't think that way." encouraged Naruto in a roundabout way. "Your match is the last one before the postpone Sasuke vs. Gaara match is suppose to take place. We both know that we need to waste more time so to give that idiot Sasuke the chance to show up. Besides, if you gave up without trying you would get a mouthful from Ino and that would be very…troublesome."

Unable to help himself, Shikamaru let out a chuckle."Yeah, that would be more trouble than it's worth." Pushing off from the railing he turned around and headed for the stairs. "You owe me big time for this Naruto. I think taking it easy on me if we fight each will be sufficient enough compensation." Like with Shikamaru earlier, Naruto chuckled in response.

With the Nara boy gone that left him alone with the two remaining Suna shinobi, Gaara and Temari. Speaking of which, the female wind user was giving him a somewhat odd look. "Oh, why are you looking at me like that?" Naruto couldn't help but be a little uncomfortable by gaze that was being sent his way. "Shouldn't you be heading down for your match?"

"Don't worry. I'll be going?" Temari stated. "Before I go though, I was wondering if you could do me a favor." Despite the silent warning that was going off in his head, Naruto nodded his head. "I want you to wish me good luck."

"Oh, okay." That put Naruto a little at ease. "Good luck. Though, you should know that I'm going to be rooting for my friend. Sorry but that's how it is."

Even after hearing that, Temari didn't seem offended by it. However, she did casually shake her head. "I don't mind that. But I asked you to give me good luck and I meant a proper one." Beforehe had a chance to do anything, Temari leaned over and gave Naruto a quick kiss on the cheek. "It's supposed to be the other way around but what the hell." With a triumphant smile she went ahead and headed for her match.

After getting over the surprise Naruto suddenly realized that the only ones left in the waiting area were him and fellow demon host, Gaara. Hostility was clearly there but it wouldn't do anyone any good if the two of them were to go at each other at that moment. "That kiss on the cheek meant nothing. So you don't have to be protective brother." That didn't get so much as a twitch from Gaara. "Okay. Stand there like a statue if you want. While you're at it, why don't you take some of your sand and stick it up your-" Before Naruto could finish staying the rest the proctor spoke up.

"Are both competitors ready?" Nods of the head were all that was given. "Then let the third match of the Chunin Exam begin."

When the match was signaled to start Temari took out her fan, ready to attack at any time. Shikamaru on the other hand, that was a different story. Currently the Nara boy was looking up toward the sky and gazing at the clouds. _"What a drag this is. Why am I doing this again? It's not like I really care about this match."_

Apparently Shikamaru's lack of enthusiasm was starting to get to his opponent as Temari was getting more irritated by the second. _"That jerk is mocking me. He's going to regret for not taking me seriously."_ "If that's how you're going to be then I'll take the fight to you." Rushing in Temari brought her fan down on the boy. When she looked at where her fan hit there wasn't anyone there.

"My, aren't you an eager lady, aren't you?" Standing a few feet away was Shikamaru who didn't have the slightest bit of damage on him. "This match isn't that important to me. I could care if I become a chunin or not. However, I'm not going to standby and lost to a girl."

Temari response was not of words but instead she just opened her fan and swung it at him which resulted in a strong wind being side his way. When the wind started to got away the damage was there but there wasn't any sign of Shikamaru. _"He's fast when he has to run away."_ It wasn't hard to figure out where he could've gone as there was only one place that he could hide. Following that line of reason Temari did a Wind Scythe Jutsu with her fan again and like last time a strong wind was created.

From his hiding spot Shikamaru braced himself as the wind sliced the surrounding area. "She must be getting annoyed at how things are going." However, he would use the dust cloud that was created to his advantage he stretched his shadow toward the Suna shinobi. Seeing it coming though, Temari continued to back away until the shadow started to slow down and came to a complete stop.

"_So, that's how it is."_ When the shadow finally stopped stretching she made a line in the ground with her fan. _"Due to his chakra capacity and the availability of the shadows that are already around his shadow can only stretch so far. As long as I stay behind this line I'll be save from his technique."_

Standing against the wall Shikamaru silently curse when he saw that his attempt failed and recognized what his opponent was doing. _"This is just my luck. Not only to I have to face a girl but she seems to be a strategist as well. What a drag. I guess I'll just have to take it as it comes."_ After doing his usual thinking pose a strategy started to come together. Going into his weapon's pouch Shikamaru started to set it up.

Are you going to fight or are you keep hiding?" demanded Temari who was becoming more annoyed by the moment. "If not then just give up already." She followed her words up by again swinging her at his general direction. When the attack began to settle down four kunais were sent flying at her. Or so it seemed as they all hit the ground around her.

For a moment Temari thought that Shikamaru had thrown them without really aiming but notice something that was attached to the kunais. In succession the paper bombs that had been wrapped around the kunai handles exploded. Though they weren't strong enough to do any real damage they caused a large dust cloud that that it made hard to see anything.

"_Here's my chance."_ Once again, Shikamaru sent his shadow to the center of the dust cloud. There was no telling that he if he actually got her until the dust cloud started to go away. When it did was revealed that his plan was a success. _"Something's wrong."_

Shikamaru's suspicion would prove to be correct as gliding in the air on her fan was Temari. "Nice try." Temari credited. Slowly she started to glide down to the ground where she grabbed her fan. "Unfortunately it didn't pay off." Before it could be asked what the deal was with her double that had been used as a diversion disappeared, revealing it o be nothing more than a clone.

"_No wonder it felt weird when I caught her. My shadow possession only works on actual people and not a clone. She obviously figured out what my plan was and found a way to counter it. Not that bad of a move."_ By the way that he was thinking it almost sounded like Shikamaru was impressed. _"Better be careful or she'll manage to beat me."_ Not letting that deter him he went ahead with the plan that was already going through his head.

Once again Shikamaru threw four more kunais. Instantly noticing that there was paper bombs on those as well Temari about to use her fan to send them back the shadow user but suddenly decided to roll away. _"I used too much chakra to escape from that last attack. I don't have enough to credit a wind to send back his attacks back at him."_ Preparing for impending blast she shielded herself with her fan but nothing came. Looking over Temari saw none of the paper bombs went off. _"Were they duds?"_

On impulse she looked over her shoulder and saw a shadow coming her way. Moving quickly Temari was able to keep from being caught. "What's going on? How did he able to get behind me?" Following where the shadow had come from she saw that it had came from the whole that Naruto created during his match. They must've connected underground as the other hole is where Shikamaru's shadow had entered.

Temari continued to avoid the shadow until it stopped coming after her and started to retract. _"He's reached his limit. This is my chance to end this before he has the chance to win."_ She was prepared to use the most powerful Wind Scythe Jutsu that she could do when she caught the amusing smile on Nara boy's face. "What's so funny? Do you realize the predicament that you're in?"

"Oh, I do." Shikamaru replied almost confidently. "But do you?" What he meant by that started to become clear when Temari saw that she was once again standing near the second group of kunai that had been thrown. What caught her eye was that in the loop at the end of each of the kunai was a small round pouch of something. The reason for them would be realized as they exploded in a blinding light.

Closing her eyes, Temari hoped that it would protect her sight but the light still came through. While the flash starting to fade it still cause everyone who saw it to be momentarily blinded. Becoming somewhat worried the girl from Suna had her fan folded and was swinging it about. Temari could've used some chakra infused wind attacks but without knowing where her opponent was it would only be a waste of energy.

Unfortunately she wouldn't have the opportunity to gain the advantage of the match when she felt a strange sensation go through her body. _"What's going on? What did that slacker do?"_ Before Temari could ask her questions out loudher vision started to return she discovered what happen. Shikamaru was standing in front of her and in between them was their connected shadow.

"Finallymy shadow possession was a success." exclaimed the usual laid back Shikamaru but there was a trace of satisfaction could be heard within his words. "You were so focused on the paper bombs that you didn't notice the flash bombs that secretively were added to them. Then all those previous attempts were to make you completely forget about them and put you in position. You know the rest. Now it's time to put an end to this match."

Shikamaru started to the center of the arena. Despite her best efforts to stop herself, Temari couldn'thelp but do the same because of the shadow possession. Throughout the entire crowd watched on in anticipation as they wanted to see how things would come to an end. There were even shouts of encouragement from his friends and teammates who felt that it was just a matter of time for him to win.

"That's all. I give up." Of all the things that could've happened that was something that no one predicted. From what could be heard Shikamaru thought he heard someone that sounded like Ino yelling about what he was doing. _"I'll likely be getting a earful from her later."_

"Wh-What are you doing?" wondered Temari as she definitely one of the most confuse before in the entire arena. "Are you going easy with me because I'm a girl?"

"Don't be so shortsighted." Shikamaru replied offhanded manner. "Using my shadow jutsus had made me use up most of my chakra. Even if I know a few more ways to beat you it wouldn't matter. I probably only have enough to hold you for the next five minutes. This one match is going enough for me."

"Winner of the match: Temari." declared the proctor. When the announcement was made there was still a bit of confusion from what actually happen and there were some who applauded from what turned out to be an exciting match and the strategy that the boy demonstrated. There was even a few, namely a bleach blonde girl who couldn't help but shake their heads in disbelief for him giving up such an opportunity.

Down with the two competitors, Shikamaru released his shadow hold on Temari who was still stunned at how things ended. _"What is this boy's deal? He had me beaten let he gave up as if this mach was no big deal."_ Unable to help herself she let out a chuckle. _"He seems to be more interesting than I originally thought."_

"Are you deficient or something Shikamaru?" questioned Naruto who left the waiting area after the match had been concluded. "Why would you give up when you had the match won?"

"Oh, quit with your complaining. Your yelling is giving me a headache." That only seemed to irritate Naruto even more. "Besides, let's just stand back and watch the next match." Luckily that stopped the spiky haired blond from coming up with any retort as he was eager to see the next match that everyone was waiting to see.

* * *

You might be wondering why I had Kankuro and Shino have their match during the finals. Mostly it's because for what's to come in the not so distant future. You'll just have to wait and see what I mean by that. Also, I hope that I changed the Shikamaru vs. Temari match enough that it didn't seem like I was completely ripped off how it was done in the actual series.

Likely you readers know what's going to happen next so I'll leave it there. Expect it to be out later this month and hope that the wait for it will be worth it. Anyway, until then, see ya and please take the time to leave a review if you can.


	36. Anticipation

First off, I want to say that I've decided to put up another chapter to this story earlier than I planned. A reason is that it's somewhat of a set up chapter for what's to come and I thought I would just have this chapter come out sooner than expected and have the one that follows shortly after. Now, for the disclaimer, I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Chapter 36:  
Anticipation

"Come on, what's the hold up?" That was one of the many questions that were shouted by the audience. Most of them were eager anticipating for the match that people came to see. The match that was so anticipated that it was pushed back to give it more of a chance to happen. That match was between the last Uchiha in Konoha versus the youngest son the Kazekage. There was nothing in the way of it not happening expected for one thing. "Where is Uchiha?"

Despite being given extra time Sasuke still hadn't arrived to the arena. The further delaying wasn't doing anything to stop the aggravation that the people there were feeling. That included Naruto who was in the fighting area along with Shikamaru and the proctor. "What's keeping that bastard up?" While he tried to act like he was pissed off, it was obvious that he was concern for his absent teammate.

When it seemed like Sasuke was going to be disqualified a swirl of leafs appeared. In the center of it were two people. One was Kakashi and the other was the missing competitor of the exam, Sasuke Uchiha who seemed pretty much the same with the exception that from his shoulder to his hand were wrapped in bandages. After they recognize who it was the audience began to cheer.

"Sorry we're late." said Kakashi in a half serious manner. "Hopefully our late arrival didn't create that much of a trouble."

"You should consider yourself fortunate." reassured the proctor. "Sasuke was about to be disqualified but you managed to arrive just in time." A sigh of relief was heard from copycat jonin.

"It's about time that you showed up." voiced Naruto. "For a second I thought you chickened out." He tried not to show it but the spiky haired blond was glad that his teammate/rival made it on time.

"As if." retorted Sasuke in his usual attitude. "It looks as though you won your match. Am I right?" He would follow his words by doing a little smirk.

Matching his smirk with one of his own, Naruto went ahead and responded. "Was there any doubt?" The brief conversation between the two would end as they both turned their attention to Gaara who was staring at them with unconcern eyes. "Don't take that guy lightly, Sasuke. Remember what he did to Lee." All the Uchiha gave that he actually heard him was by giving a short nod. "You better win. This might be the only chance for you to have a match against me in such a way."

This time there was more of a reaction as Sasuke became more serious but a barely noticeable smirk was surfacing. "Don't worry. After I'm done with him we'll have that decisive match." Recognizing the danger of the situation Naruto wanted to give Sasuke more of a warning but wouldn't be able to do.

"Come on, Naruto." insisted Shikamaru. "They can't start the match while we're here." Grudgingly the blond followed his friend as the two of them started to make their exit. But that didn't stop him from giving Sasuke one more look from the corner of his eye as he left the area.

**00000000**

"Man, Sakura, you're so lucky." conveyed Ino while they waited for the next match to start. "You're team is really amazing."

"What are you talking about?" wondered Sakura. She had no clue what her recent reconcile friend was getting at as she was glad to see that her not so secret crush, Sasuke had finally showed up. _"I can't tell what happen to it."_ She was referring to the curse mark that was placed on Sasuke's neck and her not being able to see it from where she was sitting.

"I mean of course Sasuke is an excellent shinobi. He's one of the main reasons why most everyone has come here." Ino was correct as there were Lords and many other powerful people from various lands that were in attendance and the main reason being because of the match that was about to happen. "Also, who would've thought that Naruto Uzumaki would actually beat Neji Hyuga?"

Unknown to the two girls, the recently healed but still recovering Rock Lee had arrived with his instructor, Gai and happen to hear what was said. He couldn't help but become a little depress as he realized that the two mentioned were becoming highly praised by everyone who was watching. Despite himself, Lee couldn't help but feel depressed. _"It seems as though I'll have to train even harder if I want to match their fiery passion."_

**00000000**

"I can't believe that you just gave up like that." After leaving the fighting area both Naruto and Shikamaru were heading back to the waiting area so they would have a good view of the upcoming fight. "I mean, you had the match won and you just ended like that is really anticlimactic."

"Oh, give it a break." Shikamaru casually shot back. "I explained my reasons for forfeiting so deal with it." That only made the blond mumbled some something that probably wouldn't be suitable for children. "Do you think that he has a chance of winning?" There was no need to explain what he meant by that question.

"Not sure." Naruto answered truthfully. "Sasuke was strong before the exams even started and he surely has gotten stronger. Maybe if he goes all out he might just get out of it alive." The rest of their conversation would be put on hold as they suddenly heard what sounded like screams in an upcoming hallway. Going over the two of them saw something that made their stomachs a bit uneasy.

Scattered throughout the hallway was blood and was resembled human bodies. In the center of all that bloody slaughter was Gaara who didn't even seem the least bit faze about it. Not even batting an eye the redhead started to walk down the hallway and didn't take notice of the stunned looks of Naruto and Shikamaru. He got a few steps past them before stopping. "After Uchiha you're next, Naruto Uzumaki." That said, Gaara continued walking down the stairs. Only after he was gone did the two Konoha genin start to calm down.

"Man, that killer intent was so strong." expressed Shikamaru who was the first to recover enough to speak. "For someone being able to kill like that without hesitation is really saying something about that boy's stability." He didn't even have to look over to know that Naruto was thinking along those same lines. "Not even sure that Sasuke could go up against him."

All of a sudden Naruto got up and started to head down the stairs. "Come on. We got to find Kakashi. Have to tell him to stop this match." Not waiting for any response he continued to search for the jonin in question. Right behind him was Shikamaru who was having some trouble in keeping up with the worried blond.

**00000000**

"Hey, how's it going?" Just as the upcoming match was about to begin, Kakashi went to join where Sakura and the others were in the audience. "Hopefully none of you were troubled by the late arrival." When he said that, Ino glance over to Sakura who had been worried about the absence of her other teammate the whole time.

"Kakashi, what happen to the mark that was on Sasuke's neck? Is it…" Sakura couldn't get out the rest of what she wanted to say as images of the curse mark reacting flashed in her head as well as the ominous words that Orochimaru had said.

"Don't worry Sakura. It's been taken cared of." Kakashi calmly replied. "By the way, what happened during Naruto's match? Did he happen to win?"

"Yes he did." Sakura answered; glad to have something that'll make her forget about the concern that she still had for her black haired teammate and crush. "You should've seen it Kakashi. How he won it was amazing. I don't know how I could explain."

Kakashi didn't ask any further. He figured that he could get a more detailed report from one of the other chunin or jonin that were there. Maybe it would help to explain to clarify the suspicions that he had for his spiky haired student. It was then that he took notice of the ANBU that were stationed throughout the arena. _"This small amount of ANBU posted here? What could the Hokage be thinking? Apparently the threat that Orochimaru poses is being taken seriously."_

**00000000**

"Is the two of you ready? Then let the final match of the first round of the Chunin Exam between Sasuke Uchiha and Gaara begin." No sooner did those words leave the proctor's mouth, the sand in Gaara's gourd sprang out and was eager to fight like its user.

When that happened Sasuke quickly created distance between him and the redhead. However, no attack came as his opponent started to clutch his head. "Please don't be angry." Gaara started to mutter. "Just wait and you'll get to taste of delicious blood. I promise you…mother." As if responding to his words, the sand became livelier. Almost as though it could hardly wait to get what was promised. "Now, come."

After getting over the initial confusion, Sasuke seemed ready. "You want me, here I come." Deciding to take things on the safe side he threw a set of shuriken but they were easily blocked when the sand got in the way and grabbed. Quickly recognizing that wasn't going to work Sasuke decided to go with the direct approach and go close combat.

For his part, Gaara didn't seem the less bit concern. He actually seemed to be somewhat disappointed at his opponent's strategy. With the sand in front of him he felt that he was safe of any possible attack. However, when Sasuke was within striking distance he suddenly became faster and got on the other side of him.

"_He's moving like he did."_ Gaara's eyes weren't playing tricks as Sasuke was moving like Lee did during their match. The surprise from that unexpected move allowed Sasuke to get a clean hit to the side of Gaara's face. No damage was actually done to him as his sand armor took the impact. As for the Uchiha, he remained confident as before he motioned for Gaara to come at him.

**00000000**

For those watching they were both amazed at what they were seeing as they didn't expect see Sasuke do such a thing. Probably one of the more confuse was Maito Gai as he looked to Kakashi, wondering what he could be possibly thinking.

"_Is this really what Kakashi has been training Sasuke for the past month? But he saw the match that he and Lee had so he knows that taijutsu won't work. So why would he then?"_ When Kakashi notice the attention that he was getting he simply gave one of his usual smiles which made Gai rant about how hip his rival was.

**00000000**

Back with the fighting, it was pretty much the same thing as it was since the start. That being Sasuke using what he learned to repeatedly hit Gaara. For the redheaded shinobi, he still had his sand armor protecting him but only barely as it was close to completely breaking apart.

"What's the matter? Is this all you got?" Sasuke asked, sounding somewhat disappointed. Apparently he was hoping for more of a challenge. "If so then I might as well put an end to this." Going even faster than what already had been shown he literally started to run circles around a confused and possible concern Gaara.

For a moment it was believed that the end was near. That would change however as suddenly the sand that was gathered around Gaara shot out in all directions. The unexpected move would cause Sasuke to change his plans as he had to create distance between them. Now having needed space the host of the one-tailed demon had the sand surround him to where it was resembled a sphere.

Being tentative, Sasuke threw a pair of kunai at the sphere but they just bounced off like they were nothing. When it seemed as though using weapons would do any good he decided to try to use his actually fist. Somewhat foolishly Sasuke rushed in but had to quickly alter his strategy as spikes of harden sand emerged from the sphere. Fortunately the young Uchiha was able to avoid getting impaled by the spikes and get a punch in but still got cut up from grazing the spikes.

Wanting to catch his breath, Sasuke started to back away but had to dodge again as those sand spikes extended and tried to pierce him. It got to the point that he actually used chakra to climb up the side of the large wall of the arena. _"I guess Kakashi wasn't lying when he said that this guy's sand was a problem to deal with. I guess I'll have to use it after all."_

**00000000**

"Finally found you Kakashi." After searching throughout the entire arena, Naruto and an exhausted Shikamaru finally found the person that they were looking for. "You got to put an end to this match." The request that came from Naruto came as a surprise to those who heard as it wasn't something that they expected to hear. "If this continues there's a good chance that Sasuke will-"

"That's enough Naruto." interrupted Kakashi with a touch of seriousness in his voice. "You don't need to worry about Sasuke. He'll do just fine." The confidence that the copycat jonin had didn't really help to ease the concern that the unknown demon host. "There's a reason why for the past month I've focused Sasuke's training on taijutsu and you're about to see why."

When it became clear that there was no way of changing his decision, Naruto and everyone else looked to where Sasuke was and see if Kakashi's confidence was validated. From what could be seen the Uchiha was starting to do a series of hand signs and started focusing on something that seemed to center around his left hand. While most of those there didn't understand what he was trying to do, Maito Gai instantly recognized what the genin was trying to do.

"Oh my, you didn't Kakashi." Turning around he just received the same confident expression on the face of the jonin in question. "Don't tell me that you actually taught him that jutsu."

"What jutsu?" Sakura wondered. She didn't like the slight tension that was going on between the two more experienced shinobi. "What jutsu are you talking about?"

"Chidori." That was the only thing that Gai would say.

**00000000**

Still clinging to the wall, Sasuke was continuing to focus his chakra into his left hand. It would get to the point that his chakra could actually be seen. The nature of it would alter to the point that it seemingly became electricity. Apparently getting want he wanted Sasuke started to run down the wall and continued to do so when he reached the ground.

As the Uchiha charged in the sound of birds chirping was heard. Not standing back, Gaara decided to retaliate. While still inside of the sphere of sand another set of spikes came out and tried to attack. However, no matter how much he tried none of them hit the mark. The reason why that was the case was because unlike last time, Sasuke was using his Sharingan and that predict where the next attack with the spikes was going to come from.

Having made up the distance he thrust his lightening chakra powered hand into the sphere and didn't stop until he was elbow deep in it. There was no telling what happen but when the sound of Gaara screaming was heard a strange feeling was felt. Sasuke would try to free his arm and only after a few hard tugs was he able to get it out. The feeling that was being felt seemed to only increase and was added with murderous intent and it was focus on Sasuke.

**00000000**

Even though they were a good distance away, most of the audience could sense the intent. None of them could understand what it was precisely with the exception of one perhaps. That person being Naruto Uzumaki and the reason for that was because it was similar to how it felt when he confronted Kyuubi in his subconscious.

"_Shit. The one-tailed demon of his is starting to come out. There's no telling what'll happen if that demon started to go crazy in such a place."_ His concern wouldn't go away as a large sand claw came out of the sphere and knocked Sasuke to the ground.

Naruto was thinking about transforming into Fox and try to stop him. _"Forget keeping my secret. If nothing is done everyone in this arena could be slaughtered. I'll deal with the consequences later."_ Just as he was going to follow those words up, something started to fall from the sky. _"Feathers? What the hell is going on?"_

Along with the confusion, Naruto started to feel tired for some reason. Before he could say or do anything about it he gave in and fell to sleep. He wouldn't be the only one as most of the people in the arena started to go to sleep as well. It was only those who were able to dispel the genjutsu who were able to keep from falling asleep.

After the genjutsu was employed, shinobi from both Oto and Suna emerged from throughout the arena and it was clear that they were ready to attack at any moment. If things weren't bad enough, some kind of explosion happened in the location that both the Hokage and Kazekage were sitting. Before any of Konoha's ANBU could get there, some kind of barrier came over that area. Apparently whatever Orochimaru had planned it had begun.

* * *

You may already have noticed but this chapter was more or less similar to what happened in the actual series. I of course put my few bit and pieces together and hoped that it helped to keep the chapter being basically a copy of what actually happen. Trust me, the next chapter will be more original and hopefully liked. That's not to say that I don't want this chapter to be liked as well.

As for when that next chapter is out, it should likely to be out by around this time next week. No later than next weekend. So, until then, see ya.


	37. Pursue

As promised, I have the next chapter to my story about a week after the last one. You probably can guess what might happen in this chapter but I promise that I added moments that'll change things. Now, as for the disclaimer, I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Chapter 37:  
Pursue

"Uh, what am I doing here?" The last thing that Naruto remembered was that the match between Sasuke and Gaara was seemingly coming to a close when what appeared to be feathers started falling onto everyone in the arena. Before anything could be done he suddenly felt sleepy and in some way led him to where he was now. "Did you have anything to do with me being here?"

What Naruto was talking about was that he was in the part of his subconscious that was reserved for his demonic tenant, Kyuubi. _**"Do you actually think that I would waste the time by making you pass out so I could talk with you? If so then you're really a fool."**_ Apparently the nine-tailed fox took offense of such an accusation. _**"You fell asleep due to a genjutsu. Not surprising since it's one of the many things that you suck at."**_ Naruto managed to bite his tongue because it wasn't the time to argue and the whole sucking at genjutsu was somewhat true.

"_**Apparently that trouble that you suspected of taking place is actually happening. Are you planning on getting involved or remain asleep?"**_Kyuubi got his answer as Naruto stared defiantly at him. _**"If that's your decision there's something you must do. WAKE UP!"**_

**00000000**

Following the shout from the demon fox spirit, Naruto woke up. _"Man, I'm so not a fan of genjutsu."_ Once regaining enough of his composure he got up and saw what had been going on while he was out. What he saw was something that he hoped not to see.

Throughout the arena it resembled a battle zone as various parts of the arena fights had broken out as the shinobi of Konoha were going against the shinobi from Oto but from Suna as well amongst the people who were still asleep. "_Fuck. There was an alliance between those two. This just makes things worse."_ Caught up by this unexpected situation that Naruto failed to notice when an Oto shinobi came up from behind to kill him. Before it can happen though, someone came in and took them down. That person who saved his life was Maito Gai.

"Keep your head in the game Naruto." yelled Sakura as she made her way toward him. She had managed to keep herself from falling under the genjutsu's affects. "We've got to go after Sasuke who's went after Gaara." That got the boy's full attention. "But first we need to wake Shikamaru up. We'll need his help."

"You don't need to do that. Knowing him he's faking it." As if to dispute Naruto's claim, the Nara boy continued to sleep. "Come on Shikamaru. Quit fooling around and get up."

"Don't worry. I'll fix this." said someone. It was at that time that Naruto notice that standing beside Sakura was a small brown dog wearing a blue vest. By it talking it was obvious that it wasn't an ordinary dog.

"_That's one of the dogs that Kakashi usually summons."_ Doing as he said, the dog, later identified as Pakkun, went over and bit the 'sleeping' Shikamaru in the hand. Just as expected, the shadow user stopped his charade as he tried to shake the dog off his limb. "So you were faking it after all."

"Yeah, so I was." Shikamaru asked as he finally got Pakkun to let go. "I didn't want to get involved in the fighting. It would be more trouble than it's worth."

"Well, that's not going to happen." informed Sakura. "Kakashi gave us an A-rank mission. To find Sasuke and assist in stopping Gaara." That was okay with Naruto as stopping the demon host from Suna was one of the things that he set out to do. So after some persuasion, Shikamaru agreed to go. Having Pakkun lead the four of them headed out to do their mission.

**00000000**

The genin thought that what had been going at the arena was bad but that would change when they saw what was going on outside. Throughout Konoha fights were going on and as much as they wanted to do something to help they thought twice about it as they had a mission to do. However, it got to a point that one of them couldn't take it anymore.

"Wait a minute you guys. I've got to do something." Going around the corner of a building, Naruto was doing who knows what for a few minutes before he returned. "Sorry about that. I couldn't hold it in any longer."

"Idiot. We can't waste time because you had to go t the bathroom." reprimanded Sakura. "We've should get going. There's no telling what'll happen if we don't get a move on." With that they resumed their journey. Unnoticed was that behind that same corner was something that wasn't expected.

"All right, they're gone." From around the corner was Fox. He wasn't alone because when he turned around he was facing three similar Foxes. "Does everyone know the plan?" Nods of understanding came from all of them. "Then let's get moving." All at once the four Foxes went off in different directions to do whatever it was they were meant to do.

**00000000**

"Mind telling me what you were really doing back there?" Resuming their mission the two boys were in the back while Pakkun and Sakura took the lead. Clearly the shadow user realized what had gone on earlier. "It wasn't hard to figure out. Sakura would probably had figured it out too if she wasn't so worried about Sasuke."

Though his deception had been discovered, Naruto didn't seem all that upset. "It was nothing really. I just created four shadow clones and had them transform into my other self. There orders were simple. Split up and help as much as they could or if possible, take out as many of the enemy before they're taken out."

"Don't you think that was a smart thing to do?" inquired Shikamaru, making sure that the conversation that they were having wasn't being overheard by the two other members of the group. "That must've used a lot of chakra to do that and you haven't fully recovered from your match with Neji. It should make things more difficult when we run into Gaara."

"Maybe but so be it." Naruto replied with determination. "With what's going on in the village I couldn't standby and do nothing. Also, I promise the Hokage that I would help protect Konoha and that's what I did. I'll deal with the consequences when they arrive." The conversation between the two boys would probably have continued if the animal member of the team spoke up.

"Heads up you guys. We got trouble. We're being followed six…no, seven people. Something tells me that they're not friendly."

"They're probably some Oto shinobi." guessed Shikamaru. "Probably they're trying to make sure that we don't catch up with Sasuke. Among other things." He followed that up by giving a side glance to Naruto.

"What should we do then?" wondered Sakura. "They'll catch p to us eventually and we can't waste time with them."

"I say we fight." argued Naruto. "Instead of waiting for them we should beat them to the punch and go after them. Use some shadow clones and it'll even the odds."

"That wouldn't be a smart move." disputed Shikamaru over the suggestion. "Like Sakura said, we can't waste time with them and fighting them would do exactly that. Best idea would be to have one of us stay behind and stall them as long as they can." That caused all of them to become quiet as they wondered who would stay behind in what could turn out to be suicide. "I guess I'll be that person." The others were shocked by that sudden decision.

"Let's face it. I'm more suited to deal with this than you guys would. My shadow technique will give me a better chance of surviving as well." _"Also, Naruto might be the only one to have a chance against Gaara if he goes out of control."_ Taking a stop on one of the tree branches, Shikamaru turned to where they had came from. "Well, what are you waiting for? Get a move on already."

Hesitation was form the other three as they weren't sure if they should actually leave the Nara boy behind. In the end it was decided to continue on. Giving a few encouraging words Pakkun and Sakura headed out but Naruto remained behind. Neither of them said a word as though they knew what the other wanted to say.

After completely whatever 'conversation' that they had Naruto left to catch up with the others. All by himself, Shikamaru tilted his head back and watch as the clouds floated by. _"All I need to do now is wait."_

**00000000**

"Get out of the way, Temari." Gaara strained to say. The two siblings had been constantly on the move since leaving the arena. As they were moving Temari continually glanced over to her brother. Even though he hadn't moved that much since being hit by Sasuke's attack. She still couldn't help but be a bit cautious of Gaara. "I said get away!"

Without the slightest bit of concern, Gaara shoved his sister away. He could careless what happen to her as his attention was focus on only one thing. That being Sasuke Uchiha, who was standing on a tree branch a few feet away.

"Finally caught up to you." commented Sasuke. "Took a while but I managed to meet up with you." By the sound of it there was a bit of smugness in the boy's words. "Shall we continue from where our match left off?"

No immediate came from Gaara as the boy as he was clutching his head. It was as though there was a voice in his head and he was trying to silence it. As that was going on, something strange was going on with his body. Some of the sand that he carried started to surround Gaara's right arm to form a large claw like arm. The sand would also connect at the bottom of the gourd which formed to what seem to be a tail. Lastly, the right side of his face change with his eye becoming a gold color.

"Yes. Let us continue. Help prove my existence." Gaara almost seem to demand. As a sadistic looking smile came over his face he charged straight for the Uchiha.

"_He's gotten faster."_ Sasuke acknowledged as he quickly moved out of the way of the oncoming redhead's attack. _"What's the deal with that transformation? It's almost as though it's given him a power boast."_ Getting a safe distance away he did a fire jutsu. The fireball went at Gaara but it was blocked by his sand encased arm as if it was nothing at all. _"My fire jutsu have no effect. I've got to come up with some way to get pass that sand."_ Before Sasuke could come up with any ideas he had to move quickly as Gaara tried to attack him again.

"What's the matter Uchiha? Are you afraid?" Looking from side to side he couldn't find what he was looking for. "Are you afraid of me, Sasuke Uchiha?"

From his hiding spot behind a large tree was Sasuke. It was impossible to not hear Gaara's taunting as it was loud enough that the words seemingly echoed throughout the forest. They were also bruising his pride as it made it sound like a coward. That led him to hear his brother's voice taunting him even more.

Not able to take it anymore, Sasuke did a series of hand signs. _"I'm in no position to be backing down from such challenges then how can I expect to go against _him_?"_ As if complied by his renewed determination his recently acquired jutsu became even stronger as the sounds of birds chirping got louder. The drawback to using the Chidori became apparent though as the sound alerted Gaara to where his prey had been hiding. Emerging from behind the tree Sasuke and was ready to attack.

Without even saying a word they both charged at each other. What became because of it would be a bit surprising as after the two struck one another the sand that Gaara had around his arm started to break apart. The Chidori also seem to do actual damage to the redhead shinobi as he clutched his shoulder. As for Sasuke, a small smile of triumph came over his face.

That wouldn't last long as more sand came and remade the large claw. Adding to the shock, even more sand covered its user until only the bottom of his legs was left unaffected. Gaara almost resembled a large raccoon made out of sand. "Let us continue Uchiha. I've never felt this alive before. I want more."

"_This is insane."_ thought Sasuke as he continued to avoid an even faster Faara. _"It's almost as though ever time he changes he gets stronger and stronger. How is such a thing possible?"_ Becoming somewhat desperate the Sharingan user preformed another Chidori which resulted in the same thing as the previous one. _"That was my last one and it hasn't even slowed him down."_

What happen next was Sasuke having to avoid the repeated attacks by Gaara who seemed to become more mentally unstable by the moment. Luckily he was able to hide to give himself time to think and to catch his breath. _"What can I do? If I wasn't using my Sharingan I would have been killed a long time ago. Nothing I'm using is having any lasting affect on this guy. The only thing that actually worked on him is the Chidori."_ Without realizing it, Sasuke glanced at his left hand. _"But can I do another one?"_ The warning that Kakashi said if he went pass his limit of three repeated in his head. _"Don't have much of choice."_

Once again Sasuke powered another Chidori. However, unlike the previous ones it was putting a great strain on his body. Knowing that his position would soon be revealed he quickly went into action. Regrettably though, his lightening base attack started to fade away to the point that it was close to going completely away. When it was clear that there was no way to get away from Gaara's oncoming attack, Sasuke tried to put in whatever chakra he could into his depleting attack.

When the two young shinobi hit one another there was a moment of silence as there was no way of telling what actually happen. It would be discovered that the lightening enfused jutsu did have an affect as it tore off one of Gaara's sand arms. That didn't mean that there wasn't any damage on the other end as Sasuke clutched his arm when he fell forward on the tree branch. Along with that was that throughout his face and arm were some black markings.

"_Damn it. The curse seal is acting up."_ To seemingly support his guess, a surge of pain came from the seal that went throughout Sasuke's body. To add to his problem he saw that Gaara was still standing and repaired any damage he had sustained. _"He just keeps on coming and I can't get my body to move. Move body, move!"_ Despite him practically screaming into his head, Sasuke's body wouldn't allow itself to move much at all.

**00000000**

"_It's pointless."_ As the fight between the two shinobi went on, Temari watch on. She couldn't help but to be both amaze and shock at what she was witnessing. _"No one had actually hurt Gaara and this boy has done it more than once."_

While Temari had praised Sasuke's ability she couldn't help to become worried at what's going on. _"However, Gaara hasn't shown that other side of himself."_ The mere thought of that caused her to shiver in fear. _"If that were to happen none of us would be safe."_ Recognizing the chances of that happening were high she was prepared to run at a moment's notice.

**00000000**

"Thank you, Sasuke Uchiha. I've never had this much enjoyment with any of my previous prey." Having Gaara be so happy about such a thing was uncomforting thing and not just because what he said. "But you've proven to become a bore. So you need to die to prove my existence."

A gleam of sadistice glee came across those gold colored eyes as he ready to follow up with his declaration. Despite seeing all of this, Sasuke could do nothing about it as his body was still unable to move properly due to the curse seal. Rearing his claw hand back, Gaara was about to end the life of one of the last remaining Unchihas in one merciless blow.

Before that could happen though, someone showed up and knocked him away. Getting over from the surprise it was realized that the person who interfered was Naruto Uzumaki. He wouldn't be the only one to show up as seconds later Sakura and Pakkun arrived. It became an intense moment as Naruto stood between Gaara and Sasuke who was being checked on.

"Sasuke, are you all right?" asked a concern Sakura. No answer came from the boy in question as another wave of pain came over him. Not even thinking about it she used what limited medical jutsu that she knew to ease the pain but it only helped a little. As if that wasn't enough to make Sakura worry, seeing the black marking on the Uchiha's body just made it worse. _"The curse seal is spreading again. I thought that Kakashi took care of it."_ "Naruto, we have to get out of here. Sasuke's hurt."

Not taking his eyes off of the hostile redhead in front of him, Naruto glanced over to where his teammates were. _"Fuck. Sasuke let the curse seal to get the better of him. That's not good that even with the use of the seal he couldn't stop Gaara. Have to think of something before he tries to take us all out."_ "Sakura, take Sasuke and-"

Before the rest could be said, Gaara rushed right pass him and toward Sasuke. "Nothing will stop me from getting my prey." He was completely prepared to back up his words when Sakura bravely and somewhat stupidly put herself in his way with a kunai in her hands. "Get out of my way!" Wanting to get this obstacle out of the way, Gaara stretched his sand claw and was going to use it to smash Sakura into a tree.

That wouldn't happen though as Naruto got involved. Rushing in he shoved her out of the way but was caught himself. When the claw smashed into the tree there was a sickening sound and bones being broken. Or that what it appeared to be as the entrapped Naruto was revealed to be a substitution as there was now a log and to add to it there was a silly face drawn on it to apparently mock the attacker. Emerging from behind a neighboring tree was an unharmed Naruto.

"That was close. You almost had me there." That wasn't meant to be mocking as he was being truthful. Checking his teammates Naruto saw that in his haste in protecting Sakura he had accidentally caused her to bump her head and become unconscious. At least it seemed like Sasuke was able to get around but still had some trouble. _"This situation isn't going well. What can be done to change it around?"_

"Sasuke. Take Sakura and get as far away from here as you can. I'll hold him off long enough for you to escape." That was the partial reason why Naruto decided to stay behind but apparently Sasuke wasn't in favor of that idea.

"Are you crazy? You won't stand a chance against him. I should go against him while you escape."

"God fucking damn it, Sasuke!" Naruto practically yelled. It was such a surprise that it kept the Uchiha from arguing any further. "This isn't the time to let your ego get the better of you. You're in no condition to be fighting anyone. Now, if you have the slightest bit of concern about Sakura's safety you'll do as I ask and get out of here."

By the look on Sasuke's face it was obvious that he wasn't in favor of the request. Thankfully he did it as he carefully picked up Sakura and took off. The sudden departure didn't sit well with Gaara as he was about to go after them but was stopped when Naruto got in his way. "Sorry but you're not going anywhere. Besides, I thought that you wanted a piece of me." All he got as a response was of annoyance and slight amusement on the partial transformed Gaara's face. A fight was definitely going to take place but something needed to be done before things started.

"You should go too, Pakkun." From a nearby tree branch the aforementioned dog appeared. "You've done your job and you may end up getting accidentally in the way. Plus, I know that Kakashi told you to tell him if I do anything unusual. Am I right?" Having Pakkun being unable to look at the blond in the eye was all the confirmation that was needed.

"Don't worry. I don't blame you. You were just doing what you were told from the person who summoned you. But tell Kakashi that if he tries something like this again I won't be as forgiving." Pakkun nodded his head in understanding before returning to wherever it is that summoning creatures go. "You should probably get out of here too while you can." That comment was directed toward Temari who had herself for everyone's view. For a while she debated whether or not to leave. In the end she decided for some reason to stay.

Now with nothing in the way it was just Naruto and Gaara who surprising had been patient that whole time. _"I can't take this lightly. One slip up and I can end up dead. I might as well test the waters."_ Following that line of thinking Naruto created four shadow clones. Wordlessly the clones went for the attack. Though they managed to stay around for a while they would be taken out by a not amused sand user.

"Are you trying to make a fool out of me?" Gaara questioned in anger. "Did you actually think that such pathetic tricks would work on me? Take this serious or you'll be killed quickly. If that were to happen my fun would be over too soon."

"Fine. If that's how you want it." Becoming even more serious, Naruto got himself ready for what certainly going to be an intense fight. "Remember, you asked for it."

* * *

Well, did I change things enough that it didn't seem like I was basically copying what actually happen in the actual series? If you're wondering about the whole thing involving the clone versions of Fox, that'll be explained sooner than later. Another thing I wanted to touch on was Kakashi wanting to know learn whatever secret that Naruto is hiding and the hostility that's between them because of it.

The next chapter will have the Naruto vs. Gaara fight and I think that what I have plan for it will be quite interesting. Should be out the second week August but there's a small chance of it coming out on the beginning of the month. Just have to see how things progress.

Anyway, until then, see ya and go ahead and leave a review before going. I'd appreciate it.


	38. Clash

Here it is, the last part of the invasion of the Chunin Exam. This is perhaps my most action packed chapter and I hope that as well as the Naruto vs. Gaara fight will be worth the wait was worth it. As for the disclaimer, I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Chapter 38:  
Clash

"They just keep on coming." That remark from one of the Konoha shinobi was an understatement. Since the wide spread genjutsu had been casted there was constant fighting between them and the unexpected coalition of Oto and Suna. No matter how many times they took down an enemy another would take their place. Add to the fact that they had to be careful of the people who were still under the genjutsu's affects it was becoming difficult.

Fortunately most of the shinobi from Konoha were skilled enough that they had taken down many of the opposition. Two of those were Kakashi Hatake and Maito Gai. "How many have you beaten Kakashi?" wondered Gai as the two of them were back to back with one another.

"Twenty-one." Kakashi simply answered. He wasn't in the mood to chat as in the back of his mind he was concern about the well being of his students as there was no telling whether they were alive or dead.

That wasn't noticed by Gai as he let out a short laugh. "Ha, I've beaten twenty-_two_. That's another victory for me." When all he got was a half hearted reply from his 'rival' it set him off. "Ah, you and that hip attitude of yours."

The two jonin were so focus on what was going on around them, they failed to notice that an Oto shinobi was hiding behind one of the pillars, waiting for an opening to attack when their guard was down. _"I just have to wait for the right moment and eliminate one of the two major obstacles to Lord Orochimaru's plans."_

He was so focus on that plan that he failed to noice that he'd been spotted. It wasn't until he felt someone tapping him on the shoulder that he realized that his cover had been discovered. Turning around he was instantly met with a punch to the face that knocked him to the open and caught the attention of everyone there.

"You might want to save the boasting until later Gai." Walking from behind the pillar was Fox or to be more precise, one of Naruto's shadow clones pretending to be Fox. "Seeing as how now isn't the time to do so." The arrival of 'Fox' was unexpected as mostly everyone looked over to him.

"What are you doing here?" Kakashi quickly asked. He tried not to show it but he was giving the long haired newcomer a suspicious look. It was almost as though he was trying to figure something out.

"Isn't it obvious?" 'Fox' retorted casually. Caolmly he made his way down the stairs as he joined the two jonin. "I was asked by the Hokage to help in case something like this happened. Good thing he did since it seems like you need some extra help." That said 'Fox' went into action and fought some of the opposing shinobi. Unaware to him was that as the fighting was going on, every once and a while Kakashi gave him a look. To be more accurate, he was examining him with his Sharingan.

**00000000**

"My, isn't this a surprise? I wasn't expecting that." From within the barrier, the fight between Hiruzen Sarutobi and Orochimaru continued with neither back down. They didn't stop going at one another until the arrival of 'Fox was recognized by the both of them. "No doubt that this is your doing." All that Orochimaru got as confirmation was the expression on the Hokage's face becoming more serious.

"A shame really. All of that untapped potential and power almost overwhelms the mind. I would've liked to have him as well as Sasuke. It's unfortunate that there's too much of _his_ blood flowing through his veins." Again there wasn't any reply from the Third. "No point in denying it my old teacher. We both know who he really is and who his family is."

When he heard that, Sarutobi allowed a small smile to show. "Look at this. Even after all these years you still can't get over the fact that you weren't chosen to be my successor." That remark seemed to be a sore spot for the snake user as a scowl appeared on Orochimaru's face. "Is what you're doing is because you feel as though your pride was bruised?"

"Truthfully, that's part of the reason why this is happening. But there's more to it than you can comprehend. However, you don't have to worry about that." Before it could be asked what that meant, Orochimaru performed a jutsu that caused two caskets to rise from the ground. "Seeing as how you won't live long enough for it to matter."

Sarutobi didn't say anything as he recognized who those caskets belonged to. _"No. It can't be. He isn't going to actually use that jutsu isn't he?"_ There wouldn't be time to think about it as he saw that his former student was doing the same technique again. _"I've got to stop him before he brings out the third casket."_ Throwing several shurikens he hit the casket, which stopped it from rising and caused it to sink back into the ground.

"_So, he managed to stop that one. What a pity. I would've liked to see how that jinchuuriki would've react if it went how I wanted it."_ thought Orochimaru to himself. _"At least it didn't ruin my complete plan. I can hardly wait to see the look on my former sensei's face when he sees what I have in store for him."_

**00000000**

"Move along children. Remember to look out for one another." Though Iruka tried to remain calm he couldn't help but be a bit concern. Since it was recognized that something was going on he immediately got the students moving to the designated shelter until things were settled. However, while the plan was a simple one it didn't mean that there weren't any risks to it. _"Have to watch out for any possible ambushes from the enemy."_

Almost as if jinxing them, two shinobi from Oto were getting themselves into position to take out what certainly would've been a group of easy kills. Before that could happen though someone entered the scene and prevented their plan. "You know that it's messed up to be spying on a bunch of kids." commented the individual.

Much like what happen in the arena, the two shinobi were quickly dealt with when they turned around. The way that was done though would be different as what seem like an instant, a kunai was stabbed into both of the shinobi's necks. A rush of blood came from the wounds and moments later they were still in the hands of their owner. That being another one of Naruto's clones pretending to be Fox.

The sight of the puddle of blood coming from the now two dead Oto shinobi was somewhat of a disturbing sight but luckily being a shadow clone helped him from losing his lunch. _"Same won't be able to say the same for the original when he gets this memory. Sometimes it's good to be a clone."_

With the present threat out of the way the clone looked over to where Iruka and the students were. Thankfully no one of them seemed to have notice what took place. _"Probably I should secretly watch them until they reach the shelter. There's no telling what other dangerous could be around."_

Throughout Konoha the faux Foxes did what they could do to help. Although they had been stopped here and there, no one figured it out that there was more than one of them. There was no telling how long they would last but they were going to make every second count.

**00000000**

"Shadow Clone Jutsu." Again with three clones, Naruto sent them at Gaara. Like before they lasted a while before they were dealt with.

"Enough of these childish games." yelled Gaara. He clearly didn't like how the fight was going. "If you don't take this seriously I'll kill you the next time."

Nothing was said by Naruto as he just created four more clones. "Let's see if this works." Once again the clones went in this only seemed to infuriate Gaara even more.

"I told you that this parlor trick won't work on me." Swiping his large claw in front of him, Gaara went to prove his claim as it got rid of all four clones with one hit. However, bursting through the cloud that was left by the clones being destroyed was the real Naruto.

Using the distraction to his advantage he went in and delivered a punch to the sand coated face of the redhead. "Was that good enough for you?" Like earlier, Gaara didn't say anything. Instead he gave the blond a smile which just creped him out more than anything else. _"Something tells me that I only made things worse."_

**00000000**

When she opened her eyes Sakura saw nothing but blurry images. Slowly her vision started to clear up she realize that she was moving through the trees. Actually she was being carried as Sakura noticed that Sasuke was carrying her and she couldn't help but enjoy what she woke up to.

"_I don't know what's going on but I'm not complaining."_ That moment of enjoyment wouldn't last long as what happened earlier came flooding back to her. "Sasuke, stop. Put me down." Thankfully he did as he was asked. "What's going on? What happen with Gaara? Where's Naruto?"

"Calm down, Sakura." instructed Sasuke. After allowing his now conscious teammate to get back to her feet he tried to gather himself as well. The reason was that the curse seal was still having an affect him. Though the twinges of pain were weaker they still did some damage. "You were knocked out. I took you out of danger while…Naruto stayed behind to distract Gaara." He tried to hide it but Sasuke still had a problem with following Naruto's idea.

"Are you crazy?' The Uchiha couldn't help but be a little surprise by the response that the pink haired girl gave. "What were you thinking of leaving Naruto behind? He'll surely be killed by that guy."

"It was his choice to stay behind." argued Sasuke. "Naruto was the one who told me to get you to safety while he fought Gaara." That stopped any kind of retort that Sakura may have wanted to say. "He probably already knows that he doesn't stand a chance but he's doing it so we can have a chance to get away."

Looking back the way that they had came, both Sasuke and Sakura could see signs of a fight going on but couldn't tell what was exactly happening. "How that idiot plans on getting through this I have no idea."

**00000000**

Temari had to flinch at what she was seeing. After his little trick, Naruto had been constantly running or narrowly avoiding Gaara's attacks. He used a shadow clone here and there but they weren't much help as they were quickly destroyed. As for her brother, he was seemingly taking great pleasure in torturing his prey. Especially after he hit Naruto hard enough that it sent him back first into a tree.

"_He's getting slaughtered."_ While this continued, Temari finally noticed something. _"Why hasn't he transformed?"_ From what she could remember, Naruto hadn't tried to turn into his demon form at all. _"Does he even realize that if he doesn't become Fox he'll be squashed like a bug? What could he be thinking? Or is he even thinking at all?"_

**00000000**

"_**What the hell are you thinking, you idiot?!"**_ yelled a very annoyed Kyuubi inside his host's head. _**"Quit playing around and transform already. It's your only chance of you getting out of this alive."**_

Naruto ignored the demon fox's words as he pushed himself back to his feet after being thrown against another tree. _"Thanks for the concern but let's be real here. You're worried that if I were to die so will you."_ There wasn't any disputing of the claim from the demon spirit as he didn't even try to deny it. He suddenly had to move out of the way as Gaara tried to make him a part of the tree. _"Also, I won't become Fox. I'm going to do this as Naruto Uzumaki."_

"_**You do realize how stupid that plan is?"**_ Kyuubi asked in a more subdue tone than before. _**"He's practically allowing his demon to come over him. You'd be lucky to get out of this alive."**_ It may have been a mistake but it almost sounded as though the nine-tailed fox was actually worried about him. _**"I wish you would reconsider."**_

"_Afraid that won't happen. This is something I must do. Hopefully you can understand."_ All that was given was a light growl from his demonic tenant. Naruto would go ahead and create two more clones and would join them in attacking. _"Come on, let this work."_

As with previous attempts the clones were doing little against Gaara who was becoming more furious by the moment. "Stop playing around and fight me!" Try as he might, none of his attacks managed to hit Naruto or the clones. "If you don't take this serious I swear I'll go after your friends and kill them." His threat resulted in the boy in question to become completely serious as he and his look-alikes gave the Suna boy an intense glare that would at least faze a normal person. The same couldn't be said about Gaara. 'Finally, it seems as though you're going to take this seriously."

"Who said that I haven't taken this serious?" It was then that it was noticed that the three Narutos had positioned themselves around the mentally imbalance boy. "I've just been waiting for the right opportunity." In unison the blond look-alikes did hand signs that looked familiar. "Flash Flare."

Similar to the match with Neji, a blinding light came over the area and even when the light went away the temporary blindness that came because of it still remained. _"Here's my chance."_ All three Naruto's would rush in with the hopes of putting an end to the fight. _"He's unable to see anything. This gives me the chance to stop him."_

Simple yet affective plan but there was something that the blond failed to take in account. Right when the Narutos were about to attack, spears of sand shot out from various parts of his body all on their own. Both clones were instantly destroyed as the sand pierced through them. As for the real Naruto, a similar thing happened but was able to stop the spear from completely impaling him. When he was a safe distance away it could be seen that blood was oozing out from a wound just above his waist.

"_**You should consider yourself lucky."**_ commented Kyuubi who sounded relieved. _**"Don't forget that the boy's sand will react on its own to protect its user from harm. Apparently it's a gift from the one-tailed biju, Shukaku."**_ Under normal circumstances the blond would've asked what a biju was but he had more pressing issues at the moment. _**"Just be careful. You might not get lucky a second time."**_

"This has become boring." expressed Gaara. He'd regained his vision and seemed to not like the trick that was done to him. "Become what you really are so we can have a real fight. Fight that only we demons can have."

"Two demons you say? Not only are you messed up in the head but you're stupid too." There wasn't any emotion in what Naruto said as he stared at Gaara. He was so focus on the situation that he didn't notice his wound that was starting to heal. "You may want to consider yourself a demon but _I'm_ not. I use what's sealed inside of me to help others and that includes those that I care about."

The type of response that Naruto expected, having Gaara start to laugh wasn't one of them. "If that's what you think than you're more of a fool than I though. Strength comes from caring for yourself and no one else. Care for yourself and living for yourself is how you should go through life. That' just how things are."

"_He's not going to listen to reason. I guess things will have to be done the hard way."_ With the thoughts of those he wanted to protect, Naruto began to draw out even more chakra. _"I can't be defeated here. If I were he'll likely head for Konoha next. That can't be allowed that to happen."_ Those thoughts seem to break through some dam within him as more chakra than he ever used before came out with such force that it actually surrounded Naruto. "Shadow Clone Jutsu!"

Again that jutsu was used but unlike the previous times there seemed like a hundred clones were created and were scattered throughout the area. This surprised not only Gaara but Temari who was still watching from her hiding spot. Using the surprise to his advantage, the cluster of Narutos went on the attack. Though some were destroyed most of them were able to do some damage to Gaara as he was barely able to keep the sand that encased his body from breaking apart.

"It's not over yet." A single Naruto clone came in close to the battered redhead. When it was within striking distance it glowed briefly before exploding. The after affects from blast was even more damage to Gaara's sand body as more clumps of sand fell.

"_This is my chance. Only got one shot at this."_ Putting his right hand in front of him he used his other to gather and compress the chakra in his palm. _"Got to focus and compress."_ Continually repeating those words in his head, Naruto continued to gather chakra until there was a ball of blue chakra in his palm. Rushing in, he ready to strike.

"Rasengan!" Thrusting his arm forward he drove the sphere of chakra into Gaara's gut. Despite having sand in that area hardening as much as possible it still wasn't able to prevent the sphere from continually break through the sand defense. _"Keep going and don't lose focus. Don't stop until it reaches its target."_

"_What is this?"_ Gaara pondered to himself. _"It's going through my defenses like it's nothing."_ What he was saying was true as parts of sand kept being broken apart. With one more thrust the Rasengan went through the last bit of sand and made actual contact with Gaara.

It was as though the insides of the sand user were getting twisted around before being thrown back into a tree. With the attack gone did Naruto relaxed and take notice of his work. _"For it being the first time that I used it during an actual fight, I have to say that it worked pretty good. Have to that old pervert Jiraiya for teaching me it."_

Looking over to the person who took the attack it could be seen that Gaara was in rough shape. Where the Rasengan hit it was still exposed and what sand that was still on his body was barely clinging on.

"_I'm going to lose?"_ wondered Gaara as he tried to recover. Try as he might he couldn't completely recoup from the pain in his stomach. _"I can't lose."_ He was Naruto and a group of clones coming at him. "There's no way that I'm going to lose to someone like him!" Following that scream a cyclone of sand rose up and surrounded Gaara.

When it went away even larger sand encased Gaara was in its place. The 'mini-Shukaku' was so big that he stood over the entire forest. Such a move came as a surprise that it took out all the remaining shadow clones, leaving the real Naruto by himself. _"I'm in some serious deep shit now."_ Naruto's words couldn't be further from the truth.

**00000000**

"It's all over." Temari muttered. She no longer was at her hiding spot as she created more distance from the fight. It was just too dangerous to stay without your life being at risk. "He's just toying with him now." What she meant by that was what she was seeing.

The fight had become one sided as no matter what Naruto tried it had no affect on Gaara. It was as though he was just some bug going all about the large sand created body. _"Poor bastard. Gaara only transformed because he was forced. When he has enough of this it'll be all over for Naruto Uzumaki."_

**00000000**

"_This is becoming pointless."_ Taking a moment to catc his breath, Naruto saw that everything that he used had absolutely no affect on the Suna boy. _"Nothing I use has any affect. I can't even use an exploding clone or the Rasengan since I'm too low on chakra."_ Things would only get worse when he realize that some sand started to wrap itself around him. Naruto tried to get away from it but it was useless. Actually, it was getting tighter.

"_**What are you waiting for, you idiot?"**_ shouted Kyuubi. _**"If you don't do something the sand will crush you. Remembering, if you die I die and I'll be damn before I'll allow that to happen."**_

Naruto recognized the danger of the situation he tried to think of something. That proved to be difficult as he couldn't think of anything and the sand started to close in even more on him. Suddenly, an idea popped into his head. _"It's a long shot but I don't really have a choice. Here goes nothing."_

Whatever Naruto had plan it couldn't be seen as the sand wrapped itself completely around him like a cocoon. "This is the end of you, Naruto Uzumaki." announced Gaara in a more demonic tone. "Now you die!" Following that declaration he began to close his hand and along with it cause the sand cocoon to compress. "Desert Bur-"

"Summoning Jutsu!" In an explosion of smoke and sand, Naruto was freed of his confinement and he wasn't alone. _"Oh, please don't be a small toad. I'm screw if it is."_ Slowly he opened his eyes and saw that what he summoned wasn't in anyway a small toad. At that moment Naruto Uzumaki was standing on the head of a gigantic toad.

The toad was so big that it was about the same height as the imitation Shukaku. It had reddish-brown skin with darker markings and an old scar going down near his left eye. Other things that were noticeable was that he was wearing a blue with white trim kimono that was left open and a pipe that was currently in his mouth. Lastly, strapped to his side was a dagger.

"All right, now we're talking. This is definitely a step up from my previous summoning attempts." Glancing at his hands, Naruto saw that something was different. Namely that he now had claws. Reaching behind his head he grabbed a handful of fiery-orange hair. Clearly he had transformed into Fox. _"How did this happen? I didn't try to become Fox. So why did I transform?"_

"_**Because it was necessary."**_ answered Kyuubi. _**"Your weak human body wasn't capable of the chakra that was needed at the moment. Therefore, I made your body transform so the chakra boost that came from the change would be available."**_ Already the nine-tailed fox could tell that his host didn't like the explanation. _**"I didn't actually interfere with you request. I merely gave you the opportunity to accomplish it. Call it a loophole." **_Before an argument could be started, a loud shout was heard.

"What's going on? Where am I?" wondered the confuse toad summoning. "Where are you, Jiraiya? Why would you summon me, Gamabunta all of a sudden?" The now identified Gamabunta looked about which made Naruto in Fox form to lose his balance and stumble down to the toad's eye view. "Who are you? Tell me where Jiraiya is. Why did he summon me?"

"Actually, I was the one who summoned you." That caused the giant toad to laugh that didn't sit well with the boy. "Quit laughing you overgrown amphibian!" Amazingly that stopped the Gamabunta's laughing. "You're here because I need your help with that giant raccoon."

"And why should I help you?" wondered Gamabunta . Although he seem to be more interested after seeing Shukaku. "Who are you tell me what to do?"

"Maybe I was hoping that you'd help, seeing as how my father was the last person who summoned you." To help with his persuasion, Naruto changed back from Fox to his normal self. That seemed to jolt the toad's memory.

"Ah, so you're _his_ son." Fortunately Gamabunta kept from saying the name of the boy's father. No need to say something that wasn't necessary. "Very well, I'll help you. Consider it me honoring your father." Becoming more serious he grabbed his dagger and was prepared to fight.

While all that was going on, Gaara in Shukaku form was becoming annoyed with having to wait and that he hadn't been able to kill his prey. Unfortunately that only messed with his already mentally disturbed mind. It didn't help matters that his demonic tenant was constantly adding his two cents in.

"_**What are you waiting for? Kill him!"**_ exclaimed the one-tailed Shukaku to his imbalanced host. _**"Prove your existence by killing the boy in front of you. Show that you're the stronger jinchuuriki."**_ That seemed to set off Gaara as he had his large sand body go in for the attack.

"Hang on, kid. This is going to get rough." Gamabunta would then charge in to attack as well. For his part, Naruto held on for dear life on the toad's head. When the two colossal figures collided it shook the surrounding area.

"_This is intense."_ Naruto established as he literally had a front row seat of the action. _"It's like an immoveable object versus the irresistible force. There's no telling what'll happen when things really heat up."_

**00000000**

"Come on, we got to keep moving." Sasuke instructed. Both he and Sakura had tried to figure out on what they should do when they suddenly saw Shukaku and then Gamabunta. Unable to help themselves they started heading back where they came. That was easier said than done as Sasuke was having trouble maintaining the pace as the curse seal acted up on occasion.

As the two of them continued on their way they sometimes have to stop to brace themselves as the ground would shake when the two giant creatures smashed into one another. "Maybe we shouldn't get any closer." Sakura suggested hesitantly. "Going any further is dangerous. Surely Naruto was smart enough to get safely away from what's going on."

Sasuke was going to argue that they should continue on when he suddenly caught sigh of someone blonde coming way and fast. Thinking that it might be the third member of their team he went to meet him halfway with a confused Sakura not far behind. When the two genin met up with the person it wasn't Naruto but actually Temari. By the expression on her face it looked as though she was trying to get away from something.

"Get out of my way." shouted the dirty blonde wind user. "I've got to get out of here." That confirmed the suspicions that were made. "You two should do the same if you know what's good for you." Temari tried again to leave but was stopped when Sakura grabbed her arm.

"Where's our friend, Naruto?" asked Sakura. "Did he get away as well? Please, tell us." The thought that she had for her teammate and friend was apparent in her words.

Though she didn't have to, Temari decided to comply with the girl's request. "Don't worry. You're friend is all right. Don't know how long that'll last though." Didn't take a genius to tell that the both of them were confused by what she said. "Your friend is still fighting my brother. In fact, he was the one who summoned that toad." That caused a noticeable shock from both genin and also slight jealousy in Sasuke that wasn't detected from either girl. "Honestly, I don't know who's more dangerous. My brother or your friend."

**00000000**

"Force Sleep Jutsu." As the name described it caused Gaara to go to sleep. That would've usually been a foolish move but not in this case. Throughout the battle it had been pretty much an equal one. While it may of excited Gaara, it was aggravating at the same time. Not wanting to lose he allowed himself to go unconscious and allowed the one-tailed demon to take control to take control.

Almost immediately the changes were recognized. Along with the sudden increase of strength, a chance to see what type of personality that Shukaku had. "Ha, ha! Finally I'm free. Now it's my chance to play." The demon clearly had a few screws lose. "Come on, Kyuubi. Let us have some fun."

For his part, Naruto had managed to stay on top of Gamabunta's head and was ready to continue fighting. "This is nuts." stated the spiky haired demon host. "As if it wasn't bad enough Gaara allowed a crazed raccoon to come out." Seemingly to help prove his words, the now in control Shukaku fired a powerful ball of chakra induced wind from his mouth toward his prey.

"_**Then let me out."**_ suggested Kyuubi. _**"What better way to deal with a demon but have another one fight against them? You must admit that's it's a good idea."**_ While the demon fox was trying to be reasonable, Naruto knew that there was an ulterior motive with the suggestion. He was about to decline the offer when Gamabunta spoke up.

"Stay focused kid. I need your help here." That only caused Naruto to be confused. "I'm not able to get a hold of Shukaku due to these hands of mine. That's why I need your help to do a transformation jutsu to become something with teeth and claws. Whatever you come up with you better think of it quick." Before Naruto had the chance to argue, the large toad charged in. "Remember; think of something with teeth and claws."

"Yeah, that's easier said than done." Try as he might, Naruto was coming up with a complete blank. When they were almost within striking distance of an eager Shukaku, something popped into his head. Having no time to think about it, Naruto went with it. "Transformation Jutsu!"

A giant cloud of smoke appeared which made it impossible to see what was going on inside. Suddenly, a claw in orange fur shot out from the smoke. It was shortly followed by the entire body of a large fox with nine tails. Although they had the element of surprise on their side, Shukaku was able to avoid the oncoming attack and create some distance between them.

"Ah, so you finally decided to come out to play. Now we can truly have fun…Kyuubi." Shukaku's words resulted in the fox to growl in irritation. Again the fox went in for the attack this time the large sand raccoon was ready for it. He attempted to strike with his claws but the faux fox leapt to the air and was going to jump over him. As he did he used some of the nine tails to smack Shukaku in the face, the result being him being temporarily blinding the one-tailed demon.

Using that opening the fix rushed in and dug his teeth and claws into the raccoon's body. "Get moving kid. Here's your opening." Another puff of smoke appeared but disappeared soon after and along with it was the illusion of the nine-tailed fox. In its place were Gamabuta and Naruto who jumped from the toad's head and toward the unconscious body of Gaara that was on its forehead.

He was able to get close to his target when the sand came out and wrapped itself around various parts of Naruto's body. Despite his best attempts he couldn't free himself. "God damn it! Wake up!" Again Naruto tried to reach Gaara but all his struggling proved futile. _"I guess that leaves me with one option."_ Reaching inside his jacket he pulled out a kunai. Throwing it as hard as he could, the kunai landed just short of Gaara's body.

Seemed as though the attempt was a failed one but that wasn't the case. Tied to the hilt of the kunai were three paper bombs and in unison they exploded. While the blasts weren't strong enough to kill someone they were strong enough to do some damage and more importantly, made Gaara regain consciousness.

"No!" yelled Shukaku. "I just got out. Things were just starting become fun." With one last yell the presence of the one-tailed demon returned to his host's subconscious. That left Gaara in control of the large sand raccoon and he wasn't too pleased in being woken up.

"You annoying and insignificant fool. Why don't you just die?" Fueled by anger and determination, Gaara made the Shukaku body start pushing Gamabunta back. "Now die!" He followed that by having a spear of sand pierced straight through Naruto's gut and out through his back.

Victory seemed to have finally been achieved but appearances were deceiving. Moment after being stabbed, the seemingly killed Naruto disappeared in a puff of smoke. Confused Gaara tried to find where the boy went but wasn't having much luck. It wasn't until he sensed something coming from above did he find who he was looking for.

"Incoming!" Coming down, Naruto had his hands together and above his head. When the spiky haired shinobi made contact as his entwined hands slammed on the top of Gaara's head with major impact. What came because of the blow seem to have caused the lifeless Shukaku body to crumble and break apart. Soon, what had resembled the one-tailed demon became nothing more than a pile of sand. When it went away so did the two young demon hosts as they started fall, too tired to stop their decent.

"_What an intriguing boy."_ thought Gamabunta. _"While it may be too soon to say but he could become as powerful as his father was. Unfortunately I've used too much chakra and need to leave. Pity, I would've liked to see how this would end."_ With that, Gamabunta returned to wherever he came from. When he left it created a strong wind that caused both boys to be blown against opposite trees.

"Damn it. A little warning would've been nice, you overgrown toad." murmured. Using the tree to brace himself he slowly got to his feet. His entire body was hurting like hell. The pain was bad enough that he failed to notice that blood was coming from the back of his head. Perhaps what hurt the worse was his left arm. Whether it was the shoulder or the arm, it wouldn't move whatsoever.

"_Probably broken. Even with my quick healing it'll be a while before I can use it again."_ Shifting his attention he looked over to the person in front of him. Much like with Naruto, Gaara was battered and bloody, especially just above his forehead where he received the double sledge attack. By how the two of them looked it wasn't hard to see that the both of them went through hell.

"I'm reaching my limit." Naruto acknowledged truthfully. "Something tells me that the same goes for you." No confirmation was made by Gaara but one wasn't needed as it was clear that was the case. Reaching into his jacket he pulled out a kunai. "Let's finish this, shall we?"

Tossing the kunai into the air they watched as it fell to the ground. When it did it gave the unspoken signal to end it all. At the same time the two demon vessels leapt at one another. Using what strength that they had left they threw a punch in what would surely put an end to the fight. Both punches made contact but it would be the one that Naruto delivered that did the trick.

Unfortunately they had used their remaining strength that they couldn't stop themselves as they crashed to the ground with a thud. Gaara tried to get up as he laid there on the ground but it was futile. _"I can't move. My entire body has gone numb."_ Being able to turn his head to the side he saw his opposition not far away. Seemingly the fall did even more damage to Naruto's body as he crawled over to the redhead with the use of one arm. Despite the adding of the already long list of injuries, the blond maintained that same defiant stare.

"Stay away." Gaara almost pleaded. He tried to have some sand to attack or protect him but none came. "Don't come any closer."

Unable to help himself, Naruto laughed weakly. "Don't worry. I'm in no condition to attack you. Although I'm better off than you are." Again the blond briefly laughed. "At least I was able to keep you from going after my friends."

"Why? Why would you fight so hard for anyone but yourself?" wondered Gaara, somewhat hesitantly. He just couldn't understand it.

Gone was the humor from the boy's face and was replaced with one of complete seriousness. "Because they saved me." replied Naruto evenly. "Even though we grew up differently I can understand how it must've been like for you. Hated, ostracized and maybe if things were different those things would probably have happen to me. But there are people who I care about and would be there for me if I needed it." The images of those people would flash through his head before he continued what he wanted to say.

"It's because of them that I was saved from becoming an actual monster. I would do anything for them, even if it meant giving up my life. So, if you come after any of them I'll kill you without a moment's hesitation." Too add to the threat, the usual blue eyes of Naruto changed to threat slit eyes that belonged to Fox.

Before anything else could be said or done, three figures appeared. One was Temari who went to her brother and the other two were Sasuke and Sakura who knelt beside Naruto. "Take it easy Naruto. Its over." spoke Sakura. As she went to work in treating her friend's injuries with what medical jutsu she knew, Sakura wondered if her eyes had played tricks on her as she though that Naruto's eyes had been a different color.

"She's right." added Sasuke. "That guy is completely drained. He won't be doing anything for a while." Looking at the condition that Gaara was in, Sasuke couldn't help but wonder. _"What have you done Naruto to be able to do something like this?"_

"Oh, that's good. I'm going to sleep now." Exhaustion had seemed to have finally gotten the best of Naruto as he allowed himself to slip into unconsciousness.

Over with Gaara, Temari couldn't believe what she was seeing. That being the slight of her brother in such a beaten and weaken condition. Putting away the shock for a later time, she turned her attention to the Konoha shinobi. Though she was outnumbered there was a chance of Temari beating them.

"That's enough." Gaara declared quietly. "No more fighting." Temari couldn't help but be shocked at what she had heard.

"_I've never seen Gaara like this. He's completely done."_ "Okay. Let's go." Carefully picking her brother up, the two Suna siblings took off, not once looking back.

"Shouldn't we have stopped them?" inquired Sakura. She was done treating her friend but wasn't able to completely heal him as the young medical specialist could do only so much.

"No. Let them go." exclaimed Sasuke. "Besides, we got more important things to do." Agreeing with that line of reasoning, both Sasuke and Sakura picked up the still unconscious Naruto and started to make their way back home.

**00000000**

Back at Konoha, the battle of Konoha versus Oto and Suna had come to an end. Casualties were the result on both sides but more so from the combined villages side. With the lost both Suna and Oto left before what remained of their shinobis were captured. Regrettably one of those who got away was Orochimaru with the aid of four of his men.

Luckily Konoha faired okay all things considering. Most of the civilians survived thanks to the shinobi, the two sannin members, Jiraiya and Tsunade as well as the added assistance of Fox whose support throughout the village was spreading. That didn't mean though that the casualties for Konoha weren't that serious since one of them was the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi.

In an attempt to seemingly stop his former student Orochimaru, he had sacrificed his life. While his attempt didn't stop him for good it was able to put him out of commission for sometime. Sadly though, being the victors in this battle didn't make what loses that they suffered any easier for them to accept.

* * *

There it was. Hopefully what happened in this chapter wasn't a disappointment. I'll admit that the parts involving Sarutobi and Orochimaru weren't as a good as I hoped they could be but at least I didn't completely overlook it. I may of mentioned this in the previous chapter but the usaged of the multiple Foxes was an idea I thought of doing as it would help improve the image that the village may have for the person and at the same time remove suspicion from Naruto.

Even though most of the whole Chunin Exam/Invasion arc was done with this chapter they'll be another chapter which will be a cooling off from what has been going on in the last few chapters. Expect that one to be out sometime later this month and it may not be the last update this month as I'm considering having two more updates. Just have to wait and see. Until then, see ya and leave a review as I would appreciate it.


	39. Recovery

I said I would try to update this story with another chapter and fortunately I was able to do so. By the title you can probably guess what it's going to be about. Simply put it's going to be what happened after the chunin exam/invasion but I promise you that it'll help to set up for what's to come next.

As for the disclaimer, I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Chapter 39:  
Recovery

The invasion was over. Konoha came out of the combined assault of Suna and Oto. However, when it was all said and done it was hard to tell which side came out of as victor. Many shinobi and civilians died on that horrific day but for Konoha they received a serious blow as the leader of their village, the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi gave up his life so to prevent his former pupil, Orochimaru from continuing with his sadistic plan.

That leads to where mostly everyone was. In a day that no one was looking forward to, it was the day that the Third Hokage and the other shinobi who had died to rest. Even those who were injured during the invasion and capable of moving attended the somewhat symbolize the mourning that everyone were feeling about what had happen.

As one by one they laid a flower in tribute the sky began to darken. Also as though it was expressing what everyone was feeling, it started to rain. Although it wasn't really recognized it seemed like the sky was crying. The services continued for a while longer before it was concluded and they all went their own way. Now that was over a question had to be asked. That being where do they go from here?"

**00000000**

Days Later…

"_Ah, such beauty."_ On a rooftop was Jiraiya who was at work. To be more precise, he was using the rooftop to see into the nearby public bath. _"This is truly a sight for these eyes."_ This continued for a while longer before the man spoke up. "Are you going to show yourself or stay hidden?"

Jiraiya's suspicions would prove to be correct as two individuals showed themselves. Only then did he turn around and face them. "My, this is a surprise. I didn't think that it was the Third's two top advisors. How did the negotiations with Suna go? Good I hope."

"It went without incident." clarified the male of the pair, Homura Mitokado. "Suna agreed with the terms and truce that were given. They were quick to do so when it was discovered that Orochimaru had killed the Fourth Kazekage and used them as pawns."

"The truce couldn't come at a better time." added the other half of the two, Koharu Utatane. "Konoha sustained heavy losses from the invasion. It'll be a while before our forces are back at full strength. If our enemies were to discover this it would be trouble for the village."

"That's a given." agreed Jiraiya. He was no longer peeking into the public bath as he was focus completely on the conversation. "But what does that have to do with me? It would seem as though things will get better in time." Silence came over the three for a while before Homura got to the point why they were there.

"Jiraiya, we are hoping that you would consider becoming the Fifth Hokage." Again there was brief silence before the elderly man continued. "With the death of the Sarutobi, Konoha is in need of a strong leader. You fit that role."

No immediate response came from Jiraiya as he allowed what was said to sink in. "Sorry but no thanks. Being Hokage isn't really for me. Besides, it was already decided that Tsunade would become the Firth sometime after the Chunin Exam." He was going to take his leave but was stopped when he heard what Koharu said next.

"That's correct. However, there's a problem with that decision."

**00000000**

At an isolated part of the woods that was away from the village, the sound of birds chirping could be heard. Seconds later it was replaced by something smashing into a rock. The source for both of sounds came from Sasuke as he was practicing the Chidor and used a large boulder and the surrounding area as targets. Judging by how the area looked it was safe to say that he had been at it for quite some time.

"_Why?"_ thought Sasuke. _"Why was I unable to do anything while he could?"_ The cause for that line of thinking was what happened with Gaara. What happen had been constantly replaying in the Uchiha's head and it always upset him.

He used everything he had and it hardly slowed the mentally imbalance boy down. Perhaps the worst part was that he actually retreated while his teammate, Naruto stayed behind to give him and Sakura time to get away. Sasuke expected that the blond idiot had signed his own death warrant but that wasn't the case.

Not only did he survive but he actually beat Gaara. For the life of him Sasuke couldn't understand how someone who was dead last in the academy was able to beat a person who could make more experience shinobi worry. Sakura had asked how he was able to beat Gaara and Naruto said that he was more determined and that was all he would say.

"_Naruto Uzumaki. How did you become so strong? What can I do to gain such power?"_ Despite exhaustion, Sasuke performed another Chidori. Unnoticed by him was that the curse mark on his neck was starting to act up.

**00000000**

"Ah, that really hit the spot. My compliments go out to the chef." Leaning back on his stool Naruto couldn't help but sigh after having his usual amount of ramen. "You truly are one of the best chefs around, Teuchi."

"You're welcome, Naruto. Honestly though, you getting your usual order is more than enough thanks." The ramen chef, Teuchi was referring to the several empty bowls that were stacked together at the boy's side. "Just don't over do it. You're still recovering after all."

What Teuchi meant were the injuries that Naruto had relieved from his fight with Gaara. While most of Naruto's injuries had already healed there were still some that weren't fixed. He had a few bruise ribs but the worse was his left arm. His left shoulder had been dislocated but that had healed already although still tender but a bone in his forearm was broken in four places and had to be in a cast. The cast would have to be worn for a few more days.

"I'll try but no promises." Paying for his bill, Naruto took his leave of the small ramen stand and started to walk around. As he did he couldn't help but notice how things were.

About a week had past since the invasion and Konoha was still recovering as there were areas that were still being repaired. To Naruto's credit, he like most of the other genin was helping where they could even if it wasn't all that much. He had wanted to help even more, even wanting to do so as Fox since he had enough on his plate as it was.

Kakashi had become more suspicious of the blond and it didn't help that Pakkun told him what happen before the fight with Gaara started. To make things worse, both Sasuke and Sakura were starting to wonder about him as well.

Luckily the three of them didn't know what exactly happen between the two demon host as the only other people that knew were Gaara and his sister Temari and it was doubtful that either of them would be saying anything. However, it was getting to the point that Naruto was starting to consider telling them about his secret.

Speaking of Fox, it would seem as though the opinion that about him seem to be changing. The majority of the people were of course against his demon form but slowly more people were starting to be in favor of him. It seemed to start when the clones of Fox helped where the y could during the invasion. It was only by a stroke of luck that no one realized that there had been more than one of them going around the village.

Apparently Naruto was so wrapped up in his thoughts that he failed to notice that someone was trying to get his attention. It wasn't until the person grabbed his shoulder that he noticed. "Hey, are you okay Naruto? You didn't hear me call you?"

"Sorry. I wouldn't have done that if I knew that it was you Hinata." The girl in question reacted by blushing and looking everywhere but at her friend. Naruto had to hold in a laugh as he found the girl's reaction amusing and at the same time cute. Shaking off that unexpected thought he restarted the conversation. "How are you doing Hinata? Have you recovered from you injuries?"

That helped put the Hyuga girl at ease as she looked over to Naruto and her blush was nearly completely gone. "Yes, I'm getting better. I still got to take it easy for a while but I'm getting there."

"Good to hear." expressed Naruto in complete sincerity. "Sorry about not really seeing you more as you were recovering. Some friend I am."

"Don't worry, I understand. You were getting ready for the finals of the Chunin Exam and focusing on that took precedent. Having to concern yourself about a recovering friend would only distract you." You could see that Hinata wasn't trying to lie about it and was speaking the truth. Hearing her say that seem to help relieve Naruto of some of the guilt that he felt about the subject and kept the conversation as a casual one.

"Thanks Hinata. Curious though, what are you doing here? Just taking a walk?" He got a nod for confirmation. "Then would you mind if I join you?" Again he got a nod but Hinata would blush as well. Soon the two friends resumed their walk but this time together.

**00000000**

"How much longer are you going to be doing that?" Near one of the lakes of Konoha, Ino was watching as her friend was working on a training exercise. Although she tried to not show it she couldn't help but be a bit interested at what was going on. "I mean, you've been at that for the last hour. Maybe you should take a break Sakura."

Taking the advice of her friend, the Haruno girl stopped with her training for the moment. Before stopping though she cleaned the area that she had been using then went to sit beside Ino. "Man, I didn't realize how drained I was. I'm starting to wonder if I'll ever get that technique to work."

"You knew that it wasn't going to be easy. There's a reason why there isn't that many who specialize in medical ninjutsu." Regrettably that cause Sakura to feel more depress than she already was. Ino quickly tried to fix that by changing the subject. "I've been meaning to ask, why did you become interested in medical ninjutsu? And don't say that it was a hobby of yours."

"Actually, that's part of the reason." clarified Sakura. "I saw it used when they tried to heal Naruto's eyes and I found it fascinating." Slowly a small smile came over her face as she remembered something. "So on my own I started to learn how to do some. None of it was dangerous. They were just small stuff." Ino didn't say anything as she knew that there was more to her friend's story and because she wanted to hear the rest.

"Also, though I hate to admit, I was the weakest member of my team. More than once I was saved by either Sasuke or Naruto. I was starting to think that I was just someone that they were stuck with. That's why I decided to become a medical specialist so I wouldn't be depended on them. At least I won't feel like a burden to the two of them."

Seemingly Sakura's determination returned as she got up and went back to work on her training exercise. The exercise was her trying to revive a fish that was taken from the lake. _"Got to keep going. I won't stop until I'm able to walk beside Sasuke and Naruto."_ Fighting through the strain, Sakura continued to train in the hopes of getting stronger.

Unnoticed by the medical specialist in training was that her bleach blonde friend was looking attentively at what was being done. What Sakura said repeated in Ino's head and she couldn't help but feel that she had an idea what her friend had been feeling. While she usually was able to hold her own in a fight, Ino sometimes felt that she held Shikamaru and Choji back. She hated to admit such a thing as she felt that she could do better.

"_A medical specialist? I wonder."_ A variety of ideas went through Ino's head as she tried to think on ways to improve herself.

**00000000**

"Come on, we're almost done." stated Kiba. Getting nothing but a nod from his companion the two of them continued what they were doing. Since the invasion they've been helping with the repairs and clearing out the debris. After doingthis for a while longer they took a break. "Man, this sucks. We should be out training, not being on cleanup duty. Wouldn't you agree, Shino?" Expecting to get nothing from his usually silent teammate, he was a bit surprise when the bug user spoke up.

"Putting other's needs over their own is a sign of that person's quality." exclaimed Shino. All he got for a reaction from Kiba was confusion so he simplified it. "We should put the needs of others ahead of what we may want. Besides, this could be considered as a form of training."

Kiba hated to admit it, what Shino said held some truth. He was being selfish with his constant bitching and he knew what the reason was. "Maybe I'm just upset that I did nothing as the village was under attack." Remembering how he had easily fallen under that sleeping genjutsu was still a sore spot for the young Inuzuka. "At least you got a reason for not being able to do anything to help. The match that you and that guy from Suna had was great. If anyone is going to be promoted to chunin you'll surely be one of them."

"Whether anyone gets promoted is up to debate. No announcement has been made and probably won't be one until a new Hokage is found." A moment pass that neither one said as they remembered the moments that they had with the Third. "Whoever the Fifth is going to bethey'll have some big shoes to fill. Wouldn't you agree, Kiba?"

"That's something we can agree on. Now shouldn't we get back to helping with the repairs?" Going back to his suual silent treatment, Shino answered Kiba by nodding his head. Without saying much else the two went back to help fix up Konoha.

**00000000**

"Meat Tank Jutsu." Rolling forward was a ball of expanded Choji Akimichi. What he was charging toward was his good friend, Shikamaru Nara. Fortunately for the shadow user was able to get out of the way of the oncoming charge. Before a second attempt could be made he tried for an attack of his own.

"Shadow Possession Jutsu." Try as he might, Shikamaru's jutsu didn't work. _"Oh no, I'm out of chakra."_ Coming up with no other idea the Nara boy did the only thing he could do and that was leaping out of harm's way. "That's enough, Choji. Let's stop."

Stopping the rolling, Choji shrunk back to his usual plump size self. "All right, then. I was starting to get dizzy from all that rolling anyway." The two took a breather which was them sitting under the shade of a tree. "Shikamaru, can I ask you something?" A small mumble was all the confirmation that was given. "What was it like? Being in a battle I mean."

Turning away from cloud gazing, Shikamaru looked over to his friend. He could understand why Choji had asked such a question. While their team had been on a couple of missions they weren't that dangerous. Even during the second phase of the Chunin Exam they were able to avoid any actually fighting as they got their second scroll by surprising the team that they got it from.

What Choji was referring to was when Shikamaru went with Naruto and Sakura to go after Gaara. Along the way he stayed behind to delay the Oto shinobi that had been following them. Long story short, he probably would've died if it wasn't for Asuma saving him.

"It was a little freighting. Worrying that at anytime your life could end." established Shikamaru truthfully. "But it was like we were told in the academy. A shinobi should be ready to put their life on the line. Comes down to either they die or we die." Looking over he saw that his friend had some difficulty with what was said.

"Hey, how about we go get some barbeque? My treat." As expected the offer caused Choji to forget about what was said and cheered him up. Though Shikamaru knew that making such an offer would result in him losing a large sum of money it was worth it to keep his friend from being depress.

**00000000**

In one of the apartments of Konoha a lone jonin sat in the dark. The only source of light was the balcony window that he was facing away from. That jonin was Asuma Sarutobi who was just sitting in a chair while smoking a cigarette. Getting rid of the cancer stick he just sat there, doing nothing. "You can quit hiding. I know that you're here."

Nothing happen for a while and perhaps Asuma was mistaken. That wouldn't be the case however as someone showed themselves. There wasn't anything dangerous about the person as no intent to fight was felt form them. "I shouldn't be surprise that you saw through my genjutsu." Walking over the person stepped into the light. When they did the identity of the person was revealed to be Kurenai Yuhi. She continued to walk until she was standing behind her fellow jonin's chair. "You are usually the one who sees through my deception. How are you holding up?"

"I'm fine. All things considering." stated Asuma in a calm voice and not looking back. Peering over his shoulder, Kurenai saw that on the table by the chair was a photo of Asuma when he was a kid with the Third Hokage minus the formal robs.

"You know he did what he thought what he had to do." Voiced Kurenai, hoping to get the man to somewhat open up.

"I know." Asuma calmly agreed. "There was a threat to Konoha and being who he was he did what he felt was the only option. That was something to be expected from him." Although he was saying all of that with a even tone, Asuma tried to keep the tears from escaping. "But despite all that I can't help hating how his life ended. Why is that?"

"Because he was your father." spoke the genjutsu user. "Even if you had your issues with him you were still his son. It's only natural that a son to be saddened by their father dieing." That seemed to be the thing to get Asuma to let go and allow the tears to freely flow down his face. Without saying a word, Kurenai knelt down and wrap her arms around him to help comfort the grieving man.

**00000000**

"Maybe you should call it a day, Lee?" suggested Gai. He had decided to take his team to get some training since it would be their first one together in quite some time. It was later that day and one of them was still going at it.

Whether Lee heard him or not was anyone's guess as he just continued what he had been doing. "No, let us continued a while longer. I can go on." Seeing the determination of his student, Gai allowed him to continue

While that was going on the two other members of the team were taking a breather and watched what was going on. "Can you believe him? He's still recovering from major surgery and he's training like nothing happened at all." Suddenly TenTen remembered that there was another member of the team that was recovering. "By the way, how are you holding up, Neji? Still hurting from your injuries?"

"I'm doing fine." acknowledged Neji. "My injuries weren't as bad as originally thought to be." Recalling how his injuries occurred he couldn't help but recall what happen in his match against Naruto. More importantly, Neji remembered what the blond had said. _"To actually change one's destiny. It'll be interesting to see if such a thing is possible."_

**00000000**

As most of Konoha slowly started to recover from the disaster that happen during the invasion, there were some who had trouble getting over it. One of those being the one eyed Sharingan user, Kakashi Hatake. He was standing before a large stone that had the names of the shinobi who had lost their lives in duty. While there were many names on the stone, many from people that he had known, it was two names in particular that Kakashi was focus on. The names being of his former sensei and teammate.

Why he was there was to pay his respects to them but also try to figure things out. Namely what the deal was with one of his students, Naruto Uzumaki. Though Kakashi had sent him, Sakura and Shikamaru to go after Sasuke, he saw it as an opportunity to find out if his suspicions of there being something that the boy was hiding. Unfortunately things didn't go the way that he hoped.

When he summoned Pakkun to know what he found out the dog told his him that his plan had been found out and was also told of the warning that Naruto gave. Since then the boy in question hadn't been around him with the exception of the few training sessions and small missions that their team had and even then Naruto didn't say anything to Kakashi except when it was necessary. It was only when he was talking to Sakura nd to a lesser extent, Sasuke did he act like his usual self.

"_What should I do? If I continue with what I've been doing I could lose what trust I have left with Naruto."_ Reaching over, Kakashi traced a hand over the two names that were on the stone. _"I wonder what you two would do if you were in my position? Would you continue to try and find out what is going on or would you let it go? That's a question that I hope to find out before it's too late."_

**00000000**

Konoha wasn't the only ones to suffer from the attack that had occurred. Inside of his many bases was the person behind the entire thing, Orochimaru. At the moment he was doing what he had been doing since returning to Oto. That being damning the one responsible for the immense pain that he was feeling.

"Damn you Sarutobi!" The pale skinned sannin's yells were loud enough that they were heard throughout the base. Even so, no one was willing to go see what was going on. Reason being that whenever someone did the person was killed without a moment of hesitation. Soon no one wanted to be anywhere near the room that the one they served resided in.

"What a mess." Kabuto remarked as he entered the room. So far he was the only person to do without being killed. Only reason Orochimaru kept himself form killing him was that he felt that Kabuto's inique abilities were too valuable to lose. "We don't have that many medical specialists to being with. Keep this up and there won't be any left." A cold stare from the snake user helped to warn the former Konoha shinobi to watch what he said, no matter how much liberty he was giving it got to a point.

"While the price was high, you accomplish one of the things that you set out to do. With the Third now dead there is one less person that'll stand in your way. But mostly, you managed to get your hold on Sasuke. It's only a matter of time until he comes to you." Luckily that seemed to put Orochimaru in a better mood as a creepy smile showed itself on his face.

"Yes. I may of lost my jutsus and arms. However, soon I'll get something that'll give me untold power. Once I have those eyes in my possession I'll make all those who stands in my way." Glancing from the corner of his eye, Orochimaru saw a shriveled hand under glass and a ring on one of the fingers. _"Also, I'll finally be stronger than Itachi."_

**00000000**

"Ah, this is what I needed." After having a pleasant walk with Hinata and taking her home, Naruto decided to clear his head before calling it a day. The way he figured to do that was going to his private training area and train while as Fox. He had been doing such a thing since he recovered enough were it wouldn't put too much strain on his body.

At the moment he was in the middle of one of his routines and was doing a good job at it when suddenly an image of a blushing Hinata appeared in his mind. That unexpected visual caused him to lose his composure and mess up his timing. The result being that Fox didn't get the right footing when he stepped on a tree branch which caused him to fall to the ground. If it wasn't for him grabbing another branch he would've had an unpleasant meeting with the ground.

"_Where the hell did that come from? Why did I think about that all of a sudden?"_ Collecting his bearings, Fox pulled himself up so that he was now sitting on the branch that he grabbed.

"_**So it finally happened."**_ said Kyuubi with some amusement. It was the first time that the fox spirit had said anything since the fight against Gaara and for some reason he chose now to speak. _**"It seems as though you're developing feelings for your friend that goes beyond friendship."**_

Just as Fox expected, what was said by his demonic tenant wasn't something that he cared to hear. "Are you kidding me? You haven't said anything in days and you decide to say something like that all of a sudden. Let's get straight. Hinata and I are friends, nothing more."

"_**There's no need to get defensive. As humans go, you could've done worse."**_ Kyuubi disputed. _**"I dare say that if I truly were interested in the females of your species I wouldn't mind sampling her."**_ Not liking the double meaning that was used, Fox couldn't help but to actually growl at the nine-tailed fox. _"Oh, did I hit a nerve? Be honest. You didn't like it when she revealed what she had underneath that jacket of hers?"_

What Kyuubi was referring to was when Hinata was under the affects of the Nicodemus flower she became more…expressive. To this day, Naruto/Fox couldn't remember everything that happen whne he was under the affects of the flower but later he recalled a moment when Hinata had unzipped her jacket and allowed her body to be better viewed.

Despite himself, the demon Konoha host blushed at the memory. _"That's beside the point. Anyway, doesn't mean that I'm interested in changing the relationship that the two of us have."_ Laughter was heard from the nine-tailed fox as a response.

"_**Okay. If you want to deny it, go right head."**_ Before an argument could begin, Kyuubi spoke up again. _**"Get ready. Company's coming."**_ True to his word, three individuals entered the area.

Catching a glimpse of who they were, Fox got off the branch that he was sitting on and landed safely on the ground. "Could say that I'm surprise to see you but I'd be lying." Standing before him was the team of the tree siblings from Suna. "Curious though, how were you able to find me?"

"It wasn't hard really. Gaara was able to sense your particular chakra and it lead us here." explained Kankuro somewhat in a smug tone.

"Ah, a clever move. Let me guess. Let me guess. It was your sister's idea, not yours? By the way, ever thought about changing how you put on your makeup? I mean, where's the originality?" Like Fox wanted, his words angered Kankuro while making Temari laugh. "So what is the reason for this visit?"

"Is it worth it?" asked Gaara. He seemingly recovered from their fight and was back to his nonchalant way. "Is doing what you been doing truly worth it? With what you possess you could have and do whatever you want."

There wasn't an immediate response from Fox as he let what was said to sink in. "Perhaps you're right. But if I did than I wouldn't be any better then the demons that are inside of us. Instead of being viewed or act as some kind of monster I've decided to help those who need it. Whether that's as Fox." A moment later, he transformed to his true self. "Or as Naruto Uzumaki. What you choose to do is up to you to decide."

It was unknown whether or not his words actually got through to Gaara but it seemed that at least he heard what was said. It was anyone's guess what he'll do with those words. "Hopefully he chooses the right decision and doesn't regret it."

"Sorry to cut this meeting short but we need to be going." voiced the oldest member of Suna team, Temari. "We need to get back to our village to deal with the problems that we have. We just wanted to say goodbye before we left. One by one both Gaara and Kankuro took their leave, leaving only Naruto and Temari. "Before I catch up with my brothers, I wish to give my thanks for what you did." Recalling how the dirty blonde wind user showed her appreciation in the past, Naruto had to blush and become a little leery of the girl. Seeing this Temari smiled.

"Don't worry. It's nothing like that." A small sigh of relief could be heard from the boy. "I truly want to say thanks for what you did for Gaara. May not show but he's different. Fighting you and what you said seems to have started a change in him. Perhaps in time he'll become the brother that I hoped he could be." Having said that, Temari was about to leave but wanted to say one more thing. "Oh yeah, tell that slacker friend of yours that I want a rematch with him."

Knowing that she was referring to Shikamaru, Naruto had to chuckle. "No worry, I'll tell him. However, knowing him he'll just consider it to be troublesome." Sharing a laugh, Temari finally took her leave. Not long after, Naruto headed for home as well.

**00000000**

If Naruto thought that things would calm down when he got home he would be mistaken. Soon after getting in he saw his godfather pkacing one of his traveling packs. "Oh good, you're here." said Jiraiya without turning away from what he was doing. "Hurry up and get a pack ready. We got a mission.

"Come again?" questioned the surprised blond." What do you mean that we have a mission?"

"We're going to be searching for someone. Tsunade has left Konoha."

* * *

Well, I won't be surprised that some of you expected that what was revealed at the end of the chapter was going to happen. Trust me though when I say that I'm going to change things in a way that it doesn't feel like I'm ripping off from the canon. You'll just have to way and see what those changes will be.

To give you a little head's up, I may, keyword may, have another chapter out within the month and perhaps even another one after that. Depends how I feel at the time. Until then, see ya and go ahead and leave a review before then.


	40. Rogue

Surrpise, I've updated this story again. With my birthday coming this weekend I decided to go ahead and put up another chapter. Whether I'll decide to put up another one the following week, I'm don't know yet. There'll be again things that happen in the actual series but not a complete ripoff. Expect some twists here and there. As for the disclaimer, I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Chapter 40:  
Rogue

"So, this is Konoha?" Standing on one of the large walls that helped protect the village from attack were two people dressed in black robes with red clouds and straw hats that covered their heads. "Hard to believe that it's hard to believe that this is one of the most renowned villages there is. Any remorse for what's become of it?" That question was directed to his companion who had remained quiet.

"No." answered the person that lacked any emotion. "I could care less for this village one way or the other. Let us complete our task and find what we were looking for." Nodding in agreement the two individuals used a body flicker jutsu to disappear. Although they couldn't be seen anymore, their destination was clear.

**00000000**

"I can't believe that you got me to come with you for this." groaned an annoyed Naruto. He and Jiraiya had just exited the building that their apartment was and the both of them had packs on their backs that were full with what they needed. "How in the world did you convince me to come along with you?"

"Quit your complaining." responded Jiraiya with a tired voice. He was clearly becoming fed up with the boy's incessant complaining. "You already said that you would go with me on this mission and you're not going to get out of it. Besides, I did promise you that you'd get something that'll make this all worth it."

"Yeah, you said that you were going to teach me a jutsu or something that'll make me stronger." reminded Naruto. He clearly had some doubt about the possibility but was willing to go along with it. "I still think that it's pointless for me to come with you to search for Granny Tsunade when you're able to do it on your own."

"Its true then." spoke someone besides the two. Looking to where the voice came from they saw that the one who spoke up was Sakura Haruno. "So Tsunade has actually left the village." she said more as a statement than a question. "Are you the ones that are going to go find her?"

"I guess so." Naruto confirmed. "Even though Jiraiya is able to do on his own I'm being forced to tag along. In the words of Shikamaru, this whole thing is troublesome."

"I want to go with you." Sakura suddenly requested. "She's my sensei and maybe somehow I can help to have her return to the village. Please, let me come along."

While Naruto had no real problem either way for his friend to accompany it was up to Jiraiya to decide. "I know that I might regret this later but fine. You can come but you do as I ask and no complaining. Do we have an understanding?"

"Yes, I understand." Sakura was quick to accept those terms. "I promise you that I won't be a burden to you. Just let me get my pack ready and I'll meet you at the village gates." With that she hurried home to get what she needed, leaving the two men behind.

"Do you think that was a smart move?" questioned Naruto as the two of them started to head for the gates that led them out of the village. "You said that this shouldn't be a dangerous mission but do you think that Sakura should come along?"

"Maybe it is, maybe it's not." Jiraiya answered truthfully. "But she did have a point. Maybe the sensei-apprentice relationship that they have will help get through to Tsunade. Besides…" Slowly a smile came over white haired man. That put Naruto on alert as it was much like the one that he had when he was doing something perverted. "It would be nice to have an attractive young lady accompany us. Wouldn't you say kid?"

"Oh, please. Sakura and I are just friends, nothing more." It would be later that Naruto realized that while he said something similar about his relationship with Hinata, it sounded more convincing when he was referring to his pink haired friend. "Remember, your part of the deal. You promise to teach me a new jutsu and something that I might be able to use to help make the Rasengan stronger and you better keep up with your part of the bargain."

"Yeah, I remember." Jiraiya replied halfheartedly. "Right now though, we should be heading for the villages gates. Want to make a good distance before nightfall." Not bothering to argue with the man, Naruto let out a sigh before walking off to join him.

**00000000**

"My, isn't this a surprise?" commented Kakashi. He was currently standing by a shop, seemingly waiting for someone. As he waited he noticed two familiar people. "Are the two of you on a date?" The two that he was referring to were jonins Asuma Sarutobi and Kurenai Yuhi.

While that tensing remark didn't seem to faze Asuma, it caused Kurenai to blush lightly and briefly looked away. "Don't be absurd, Kakashi. Why are you here anywhere? It isn't like you to be the one waiting."

"I'm here waiting for one of my students, Sasuke." When Kakashi said that, he cast his eyes over to the side. Before anything else could be said, Sasuke arrived. "We can continue this talk later." Understanding what he meant by that both Asuma and Kurenai took their leave. "Now, let's be going, Sasuke?" The young Uchiha didn't know what to make of this strange moment but let it go by as if it was nothing. All the while he failed to notice the absence of two individuals that were there only moments ago.

**00000000**

In a completely disserted area, Asuma and Kurenai were standing face to face with the two people that entered earlier that day. "It's been a while Asuma, Kurenai. You seem well." Raising his hat one of the people revealed some of his face. What the two jonin immediately notice was that the person had the eyes of the Sharingan. That essentially identified who it was.

"There's no mistaken it." stated Asuma. "It's you, Itachi Uchiha." Seeing that there wasn't any point in it anymore, the person identified as Itachi removed his straw hat and unbuttoning the top part of his cloak. Despite being recognized and the surprise arrival now being blown he didn't seem upset about it. "You got a lot of nerve to come back after what you did. Returning to the village where you slaughtered your entire family."

"My, the people in this village seem to hate you as much as mine has for me." Following his partner's lead the other person revealed himself. He was clearly taller than Itachi but what really stood out was that he resembled a shark in human form even down to the shark like teeth and beady eyes.

"You definitely have a weird choice in choosing your companions, Itachi." voiced Kurenai. "You're Kisame Hoshigaki. You were from Kiri before you became a fugitive shinobi. You're wanted for suspicion for treating trouble between the families of your country. Furthermore, you're known to have killed many lords from several villages." When that was said it appeared as though Kisame was actually pleased by his pass incidents. "Both of you are in the Bingo Book as S-class criminals. What purpose could you have for being here?"

"It's nothing that you should concern yourself over." Itachi established in a casual voice. "I don't wish either of you harm. However, it you decide to get in our way you'll leave us with no choice but to remove you." It was obvious what he meant by that subtle threat.

"Do you think that we'll do as you say without argument?" questioned Asuma. While he was speaking calming it was clear that he was ready to act if necessary. "It would be better off if you never came back to this village. Now, I'll ask again. What's your reason for being here?"

"Forget this meaningless talking." Reaching behind him, Kisame pulled out his large sword that was wrapped completely in bandages. "I've heard enough from this annoying idiot. Let's just get of them and get what we were here for."

"Do as you wish but make sure that they don't get back to the village. We wouldn't want anyone else knowing that we're here. That goes for how you deal with them since your methods generally result in a lot of attention." Basically getting the go ahead Kisame had a sadistic smile on his face. After staring down one another for a moment the four of them finally went on the attack.

First to act was Kisame who tried to end it quickly with his sword. That attempt was stopped when Asuma used his trench knives to block the attack. As that went on, Kurenai used a genjutsu to disappear. She planned to sneak up behind Itachi and kill him with the help of another genjutsu.

Her plan went as she hoped but before she could deliver the final blow her own genjutsu was reversed with her now being captured and Itachi in possession to attack. Kurenai couldn't figure out how it was possible until she took notice of the Uchiha's Sharingan.

Even while involved with what was going on before him, Asuma saw the predicament that his comrade was in. _"He used his bloodline limit to see through Kurenai's plan and used it against her. Not surprising seeing as who it is."_ He had wanted to go help her but was occupied as the sword that he was trying to block was pressed harder to where it was pressed against his shoulder.

"Don't concern yourself about what's happening with your girlfriend." Kisame advised halfheartedly as well as taunting. "Here's a bit of advice for you about my sword, Samehada. It doesn't cut you." Suddenly, Kisame pulled his sword back and when he did it tore into Asuma's shoulder. "It tears you to bits."

While clutching his now wounded shoulder, Asuma saw that some of the bandages came off of Samehada. What was underneath them was what seemed like scales instead of a blade. _"These two are more dangerous than I thought. I figured that would be the case with Itachi but this other guy is a problem himself. We may be out of our league here."_

"Impressive Kurenai." complimented Itachi in his usual tone. "However, a genjutsu of that level has no affect on me. "You should've listened to my warning." Peeking from the sleeve of his robe was a kunai which he was going to use to back up what he had said.

Recognizing this Kurenai didn't the last thing that she could think of to break away from the genjutsu. Biting hard on her lip to the point that it drew blood caused a severe pain and that was enough to free herself from her captivity. That wouldn't stop Itachi from attacking as instead of using his weapon he killed Kurenai into the river that was nearby. It was only thanks to her using her chakra that kept her from falling into the water. She didn't even get back to her feet when she felt the presence of the wanted Uchiha standing behind her.

"Seems like your friend won't be around for long." exclaimed Kisame as if it was a foregone conclusion. "It's only right that you should join her death." He raised his Samehada up to deliver the finishing blow but stopped in mid swing when Asuma swung one of his trench knives at his head. Titling his head to the side he avoided the attempted blow. Or so it seemed as seconds later a cut appeared on Kisame's cheek.

"_How did that happen? His knives didn't make contact."_ On further examination it was realized that surrounding the knives was a blue chakra. _"Ah, I see. This guy might be better than I originally thought."_ Deciding that trading blades wasn't probably as a good idea as he thought Kisame went another way. Doing a serious of hand signs he was going to use some kind of jutsu. He was on the verge of complete a water jutsu but was stopped when the same jutsu that he was going to use appeared and intervened.

"Glad to see that you decided to finally join us." exclaimed Asuna to the person who saved him from that last attack. "I was starting to wonder if you would do your usual late arrival routine."

"Actually I have been here for a while." confessed the new arrival, which was none other than Kakashi. He wasn't alone, per se as standing behind Itachi with a kunai near his throat was another one. "Now let's put an end to this?" The copycat shinobi was completely serious about the situation as he already had his Sharingan uncovered and ready to use.

Calming turning around, Itachi glanced at the Kakashi that was behind him with unwavering Sharingan eyes. _"This isn't good. Unlike me, his eyes are truly the Sharingan and it's safe to say that he's more experienced using them than I am. This isn't good but there's nothing that can be done about it now." _"This is a surprise. Who would've expected that the two people that I spotted in that shop were Itachi Uchiha and Kisame Hoshigaki."

"Ah, so you know who I am. I feel honored." Kisame sounded appreciative but it was just a way for him to continue mocking his adversaries. "I've heard that not long ago you had a run in with my old comrade, Zabuza Momochi. It's been said that it was you that you were responsible for his death."

"I didn't deliver the finishing blow but I did have my hand in his end." established Kakashi. "Soon you'll join him as well." Kisame seem to be fine with that unspoken challenge as he was ready to prove him wrong but was stopped by his partner.

"Hold on Kisame." With only a low groan in opposing the order the blue skinned man did as he was told. "If you were to fight now it would cause a lot of commotion and draw more unwanted attention of more shinobi." Kisame was about to retort but was stopped when Itachi continued. "Remember why we're here."

"Why you are here?" questioned the Kakashi that was standing beside Asuma. After asking he disappeared in a puff of smoke, revealing that it had been a shadow clone all along. When it was gone, Itachi looked over to the Kakashi that was standing next to him.

"Could it be that you're here for Sasuke?" Only response was the Uchiha's eyes narrowing slightly. That seemed to not be the right guess.

"No. What we seek far surpasses what worth my brother may have." Suddenly emerging from the sleeve of his robe was a few shrunkens. Going as quick as he could, Kakashi formed a series of hand signs. "Water Style: Water Barrier." Coming from the riverwas a cycle of water surrounded the Konoha shinobi and protected him from the spears of water that tried to piercing into him.

While he may have been spared from that attack but when the water barrier left he was stabbed from behind by another Itachi. "As expected, your Sharingan eye is as amazing as the claims have been said. You saw through my diversion and block my real attack." It seemed like the little scuffle had come to an end Itachi didn't seem satisfied. "Apparently you were also able to think one step ahead." What he meant by that would soon be realized as Kakashi became nothing more than a large sum of water that helped to reveal that it had been a water clone.

Despite being seemingly outclassed, Kurenai was about to take the opportunity to attack Itachi with a kunai but before she could Kakashi, who appeared to be the real oneemerged from underneath the water and moved her out of the way. Why he did that would soon be realized as the Itachi that had been close to Kurenai exploded like a bomb. _"That was like the move that Naruto used in his match against Neji."_

As things started to settle down after the explosion it was standing on top of the water were the real Itachi and Kisame facing off with all three Konoha jonin. "Be on your guards you two. Remember who they are." reminded Kakashi while not taking his eyes off of the Uchiha. "Something tells me that we haven't seen what they're really capable of."

"You're truly are impressive Kakashi." acknowledged Itachi in what seemed to honest. "Even if you're not a Uchiha your ability to use the Sharingan is as proficiently as those from the Uchiha family." The praising would be over and he returned to customary stoic persona. "But now I will show you one of the reasons why the Uchihas and the Sharingan are considered some of the most feared things known." Itachi closed his eyes for a moment and before he opened them Kakashi recognized what was going to happen.

"Both of you close your eyes." Taking the concern that had been in his voice both Asuma and Kurenai closed their eyes. Only one that wasn't doing that was Kakashi but to be precise he had just his Sharingan eye open. "Whatever you two do don't look him in the eyes. If you do you're finished." The seriousness that was behind Kakashi's words helped to reinforce severity of the situation. "Only another Sharingan user can go up against him at the moment."

For their part both Itachi and Kisame didn't seem to be all that concern about the circumstances of how things went. Kisame actually chuckled while Itachi simply remain calm. "What you say is true. But my Tsuikiyomi illusion jutsu can only be stopped by someone with the same blood as me." Understanding what that meant Kakashi couldn't help but curse quietly to himself.

Before anything could be done to prevent it, Itachi preformed the technique and a moment later Kakashi found himself in a world of red andtied to a pillar with many Itachis standing all around him with swords in their hand. One by one they stabbed him in various parts of his body. Try as he might Kakashi couldn't block out the pain or break the illusion.

"It's useless. With the use of Tsuikiyomi all time, space and even matter are in my control." What Itachi said was further confirmed as the pain from the repeated stabbing continued to be excruciating. "The next three days of this constant torture will help prove what I say." Just as it was said, torture continued and throughout it all the pain never lessened.

When it finally did come to an end Kakashi was completely beaten and barely enough strength to keep himself from sinking into the water. From the concern and questions from his fellow jonin, who still had their eyes closed he heard something _"Those three days of that nonstop pain happened in only a few moments in the real world? Why didn't he just kill me instead?"_

"Ha, I guess that the claims about him weren't exaggeration." stated Kisame who had been standing back while all that was going on."Usually when someone has been affected by that jutsu they're broken down or dead. For him to be able to remain conscious is saying something." Unlike before he was being completely honest with the praising. "But that didn't mean that it didn't come without a price. Remember Itachi, using that eye is a danger for you as well." The Uchiha didn't reply but the intense twitching that his eyes were doing proved that the claim was correct.

Kakashi was close to losing consciousness but with determination was keeping himself for doing so. "You say that you're looking for something. If it isn't Sasuke then what is it?"

Stopping with his eye twitching Itachi looked straight toward the copycat jonin. "We're after the lineage that was left by the Fourth Hokage."

The answer that was given came as a surprise that the Konoha shinobi didn't know what to say. Slowly it started to click for Kakashi what that actually meant. "You're after Naruto, aren't you?" All that was given for confirmation was a big toothy grin from Kisame. "What could you possible want with him?"

"He's currently in possession of something that our organization desires to have." answered Itachi and it seemed as though that neither of them was going to elaborate any further.

"Could the reason why they want Naruto is because they want the nine-tailed fox." considered Kurenai. She had wanted to open her eyes and see what was going on but resisted the urge as she knew that it would leave her open to being caught in a possible genjutsu. _"How did they find out about Naruto being the host of the Kyuubi? Only a few people know about it and none of them would reveal it to the likes of them. But if that's the case, then how?"_

"Enough of this talking." exclaimed Kisame. "Let's get rid of these bothersome distractions and get back to why we're here." Rushing in he was ready to cut all three jonin to ribbons with Samehada but was stopped by the sudden arrival of a new individual. "Who the hell are you?"

"Konoah's most youthful jonin, Maito Gai." announced the green clad man was standing between the enemies and his comrades. This unexpected intrusion didn't seem to bother Kisame as he just smiled at the opportunity to slice up even more people.

"That's enough Kisame." ordered Itachi. "We came here to get something, not draw any unwanted attention. If this were to continue that'll happen." Reluctantly the blue skinned man conceded to his partner's instructions. "We'll be taking our leave now." Just like that both men again use the body flicker to leave the area as though they were never there.

Gai was tempted to try and follow him but chose not to when Kakashi suddenly collapsed and started to sink into the water. Reaching over he lifted the unconscious jonin and placed him over his shoulder. "It's all right you two. You can open your eyes." Slowly and somewhat cautiously both Asuma and Kurenai opened their eyes.

"I've already alerted the ANBU about this disturbance the chances of them capturing those two are unlikely. For now though we should take Kakashi to the medical center to get treated." Seeing that what was said was the reasonable choice all of them left the scene as well.

**00000000**

"All right old pervert. Mind telling us where we're heading?" Walking down on a trail a couple of miles away from Konoha was the group of Jiraiya, Naruto and Sakura. The trip was mostly uneventful as they just walked in silence. It would soon change when Naruto started to speak up. "You have no clue where to go, do you?"

"Of course I do." Jiraiya replied offhandedly. "I got a good idea where to search." Barely hearable was Naruto mumbling something about that being a complete lie. The older man had the urge of giving the blond a good smack to the head but he was beating to the punch by the third member of the group.

"Show some respect. He's you're godfather not to mention the leader of our team." Naruto was tempted to say some kind of retort but decided against it when he saw that Sakura was ready to give him another smack. It was then that Jiraiya really appreciated having the girl coming along.

"By the way, old perv- I mean Jiraiya." Luckily Naruto was able to catch himself before ending up getting hit again by his friend. "You said that you were going to teach me something that'll help me get stronger. Was that the truth of a lie to get me to come along in this search?" _"For your sake it better be the truth or you're going to regret it."_ The blond had every intention to follow up that promise if need be.

"Don't worry. I'm a man of my word." reassured Jiraiya as he was reaching for something in one of his pockets. "But first you need to do something for me." He then threw whatever he was looking for at the boy. Catching it Naruto saw that it was a small square piece of paper. "I want you to focus your chakra into the paper." Confusion was evident in not only Naruto but Sakura as well. "This'll help find out what element you are." That didn't help clear any of the confusion as it just made it worse.

"As you already know, there are jutsus that use the elements fire, wind, water, earth and lighting. Well, every shinobi has an element that they are more proficient at than the other elements. For example, the Uchihas are more skilled at doing fire styled jutsus than others. Starting to understand now?" When he got nods from both of them he was glad that he didn't have to explain further.

"Excuse me but how does putting charka into a piece of paper help figure out what your main elemental chakra is?" asked Sakura which was a reasonable question. That helped to show that she was more than just book smart.

"By focusing your chakra into the paper it'll react in a way that will identify what that person's main elemental chakra is." Jiraiya clarified. If the paper burns up, your element is fire. The paper crunches up its lighting. Cuts in half then its wind. It's earth if it crumbles into pieces. If it becomes soaked then the element is water. Now go ahead and find out what yours is?"

Curious at the possibilities, Naruto did as instructed and focus his chakra into the paper. After a few seconds of doing that the paper suddenly split in half. Holding the two pieces of paper he looked to his perverted godfather. "So does this mean that I'm more qualified to do in doing wind jutsus?" By his tone he didn't seem all that upset with how things turned out.

"Seems like it. It's also very few wind users in Konoha and even though it's not my expertise I know a wind jutsu that might suit you well. It was something that your father had worked on before his…" Jiraiya left the rest unsaid as it was something that he didn't want to say and for which Naruto appreciated.

Jiraiya stuck out his right arm as he began to explain the jutsu. "You already know how to focus chakra to certain parts of your like the feet or hands but this is a bit more advance version of that." Demonstrating what he was talking about he had chakra come over his arm. "But with this particular jutsu you combine your regular chakra with your wind chakra. Once you do that then combine them by having them circle around your arm." He showed what he was talking about by having the two chakras encircle themselves around his right arm. By how it looked it resembled a small tornado.

"After you're able to successfully combine them it can become an impressive weapon." Walking over to a nearby tree Jiraiya thrust his chakra enforced arm into the trunk. As the attack hit his arm went into the tree without any problem. When he removed from his arm the chakras were no longer there but the main attention was on the tree trunk as there was now a large hole in it. "That jutsu is called the Wind Edge. Did it catch your interest?"

The question was directed toward Naruto and although he didn't say it you could tell by the look on his face that he was very interested in the jutsu. "You bet it does." Following the demonstration that he saw he started to have his chakra surround his arm. After a bit difficulty he got some of his wind chakra to mix in with it. He went to the same tree that had been used he hit it but only got as far as his fist. Frustration was clearly seen on his face.

"Not as easy as you originally thought is it?" mentioned Jiraiya, making sure not to say anything in a demeaning matter. "Remember the key to this jutsu is that it depends on how much chakra you put into it. The Wind Edge isn't just for offense but can also used for defense to reflect certain attacks." Jiraiya elaborated further about the attack.

"For now though I want you to only work on trying to better combine your chakra with your elemental chakra. You shouldn't have too much trouble since you already learned the Rasengan. But for we should get moving since it'll be late evening when we arrive at the next town." Agreeing the three of them resumed their walk. Taking up the rear was Naruto who occasionally glanced at his right arm.

**00000000**

In one of the more private medical rooms were the jonins that were involved in the confrontation between Itachi and Kisame. None of them were badly hurt with the exception of Kakashi who due to the eye jutsu that was done to him had basically incapacitated. At the moment the four of them were discussing what had happen.

"What's going on?" questioned Gai. "Why would those two enter the village? They had to know the risk of be spotted were high?"

"They said that they were after the lineage of the Fourth Hokage." Kakashi reminded in a somewhat tired voice. "Clearly they were referring to Naruto Uzumaki." None of them disputed the claim as they agreed with what had been said. "But why would they be interested in him of all people?"

There was no answer but silently Kurenai was already coming up with a reason. _"Only reason why they could've come here is because they knew that Naruto has the fox demon seal inside of him. But for the life of me I can't understand how they found out and what their organization would want with it."_ She kept those types of thoughts to herself as she had promised to not reveal the boy's secret. Even if the situation was serious she knew that he wouldn't be thrilled about more people knowing without his consent.

"Well, it's a good thing that Naruto is out of the village with Jiraiya." voiced Asuma. "Unfortunately Sakura was about to convince to have her company them but they should be safe with one of the sannin watching over them. By this time they should be at the neighboring town. If we were sure we could possibly send them a warning but we can't." Gai started to explain that he went as fast as possible he would most likely get to them within a few hours but the others declined the proposal.

"I think for now we should keep this from spreading any further. " Kakashi suggested. "It'll lead to even more trouble if the citizens were to find about to dangerous criminals were able to enter and leave Konoha without being stopped." All of them were in agreement with that. "We should also keep quiet about the connection that Naruto has with this. There's no telling what problems will come of it if people were to find out that Itachi Uchiha actually returned to Konoha and was after Naruto Uzumaki."

**00000000**

Unaware to any of the jonin was just on the other side of the door was Sasuke Uchiha. He came to see how his sensei was doing after hearing that he was at the medical center. Just as he was reaching for the doorknob he could hear the conversation that was going on. From what Sasuke was able to hear it sounded somewhat interesting but it was the last thing that was said that really got his attention.

"_Itachi was here?"_ The mere thought of it refueled the anger that the Uchiha had for his brother. _"And he's after Naruto? Why?"_ Sasuke couldn't think of the reason but that wasn't what he was really concerning himself over. What was going through his head was finally having the opportunity to get his vengeance for the crimes that his brother had committed.

Moving away from the door, quietly as possible to prevent his presence from being noticed he hurried out of the building. _"I've got find Naruto before Itachi does."_ It was then that Sasuke realized that he had no idea where Naruto went. All that he got from the conversation was that he was probably in one of the neighboring towns. Unfortunately there were several towns in all directions that were in the surrounding area of Konoha.

"_There's no way I can find them when I don't have a clue where to start looking."_ Suddenly he remembered something else that had been said by the jonin. _"They said that Sakura was going to accompany them. Maybe I can ask her parents if they know where they were going. If not, then hopefully I can get a clue from the people who are at the gate. It's all that I have to go upon."_ Quickening his speed he hurried over to where Sakura was said to live. _"I got to hurry. If my brother finds him he's dead. That happens there's goes my chance of getting to my brother before he disappears again."_ From how he was thinking it almost sounded as though the Uchiha was more concern about going after his traitorous brother then saving his teammates.

**00000000**

While lying down on the bed, Naruto lifted his arm above him and concentrated his two chakras surround his arm. He did this for a while before stopping and letting his arm fall back down. _"This jutsu is harder than I thought. Hopefully I'll be able to figure how to do it soon."_ Naruto was so focus on his thoughts that he didn't acknowledge that Sakura was trying to talking to him until she had to practically yell into his ear. "What the hell Sakura? Why did you do that for?"

"Well, you didn't leave me with much of a choice." Sakura retorted. She was slightly annoyed but not to the point that she wanting to hit her friend and teammate. "As I was trying to ask you earlier, how long do you expect us to be here? Probably until Jiraiya is done gathering information I guess." Suddenly she heard Naruto trying to hold in a fit of laughter. "And what's so funny?"

"You actually believe that he actually went out to get information?" chuckle Naruto. "He ditched us to go have some alone time with the good looking lady that was standing in front of the hotel while you were in the bathroom." Sakura found it hard to believe but Naruto was talking as though he was completely serious. "Soon as the old pervert saw her he handing me the room keys and went after her. Knowing him he'll probably be back sometime tonight or pass out drunk somewhere."

"You're kidding right? That can't be true." The thought that one of the sannin would be like that was something that Sakura had trouble accepting.

"It's happen more times than I can remember." admitted the blond. "Unless it's a serious situation he'll more likely act like a perverted goofball. Also, don't handover any of your money. He may something like he'll hold on to it so you don't spend it but he'll just spend it on himself instead of using his own money." It almost sounded like Naruto knew that from previous experience.

Before either of them could say anything else the sound of someone knocking at the door was heard. "That was fast. I guess the old pervert struck out faster than I thought he would." Going over, Naruto went to open the door as another series of knocking began. "Hold up will you. I'm coming." When Naruto opened the door he didn't see Jiraiya. Instead he saw two men in black robes with red cloud designs on them.

One of them resembled a human version of a shark but it was the other guy that made the spiky haired demon host on edge. _"He almost looks like Sasuke."_ His remark was further solidified when it was noted that the person also had the Sharingan.

"_**Be careful kid."**_ voiced Kyuubi. _**"Don't let your guard down around either of them."**_ Hearing the warning from the fox spirit made Naruto even more uneasy.

"Naruto Uzumaki, you'll come along with us." announced the Sharingan user. How he said it was obvious that there wasn't any room to talk about it. "We would prefer that you come along quietly without much trouble."

"This is really him?' asked the man's companion before Naruto had the opportunity to say anything. "Hard to believe that the nine-tailed fox is sealed inside such a puny kid."

That remark put a halt to whatever Naruto could say. He couldn't even keep the shock from appearing on his face. _"They know about me and Kyuubi? There's no way that be impossible."_ "Sorry. I think that you got me mistaken with someone else." Clearly neither of them bought that excuse. For a moment Naruto thought that he could probably move quickly and hit either one with a Rasengan but there was something to take into account.

With a side glance he saw that Sakura was only a few feet behind him and was confused. _"If I were to try and fight them now there's a good chance that Sakura could be caught in the middle or use as a hostage. What a find time for Jiraiya to not be here." _There was the idea of becoming Fox to possibly improving his chances but that would mean confirming the two men's assumptions and revealing to Sakura his secret.

"I say that we shouldn't take any chances and hack off his legs so he can't run away." suggested the shark man. He even pulled out the large wrapped up sword from his back and was ready to go with the idea. Seemingly having no other choice, Naruto was prepared to fight anyway he can but that was put on halt when the Sharingan user spoke up.

"This is unexpected. It's been a while…Sasuke." At the other end of the hallway was Sasuke Uchiha and by the expression on his face he was clearly angry and was moments from exploding. "Leave now. I have no time to deal with you little brother."

That seem to be the thing that set Sasuke completely off as his Sharingan activated and was poised to attack. "Don't turn you're back on me Itachi! Today's the day that you die for the crimes you committed against our family." In quick succession Sasuke created a Chidori and made a dash toward the man known as Itachi, now known to be his older brother. For his part, the older Uchiha seemed only mildly interested at what his enraged brother was doing. Now die!"

* * *

As I said in the author notes at the top of the chapter, I did things that were from the canon but made some changes. I hope that the fight between the Konoha jonin, Itachi and Kisame was different enough. Also continued to the point that Kakashi is still wondering the secret that Naruto is hiding and having such people after him will only drive that wanting to know further.

Reason I decided to have Sakura join Jiraiya and Naruto is became one, it was a change and two, both her and Tsunade had a connection with one another so it could make the meeting between the two of them more interesting. Trust me when I say that this little arc will be a good one for the Sakura character. You'll just have to continue to read to find out what I mean.


	41. Offer

Surprise, surprise, I'm updating this story with another chapter. With me adding chapters for the other weeks of this month I thought I should do it again this week. As for the disclaimer, I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Chapter 41:  
Offer

That seem to be the thing that set Sasuke completely off as his Sharingan activated and was poised to attack. "Don't turn you're back on me Itachi! Today's the day that you die for the crimes you committed against our family." In quick succession Sasuke created a Chidori and made a dash toward the man known as Itachi, now known to be his older brother. For his part, the older Uchiha seemed only mildly interested at what his enraged brother was doing. Now die!"

When the Chidori hit, it was thought that the lightening coated hand pierced into the man's chest. Instead, Sasuke's attempted attack was blocked as Itachi grabbed his wrist and with one quick twist broke the left arm of his younger brother. "Go away little brother. I don't have time for you." Not even batting an eye to Sasuke's screams, he kicked him away with enough force that it slammed him hard against a nearby wall.

Unable to stand by and do nothing, Naruto began to create a Rasengan while charging in. _"I don't know why these two are after me or how they know about Kyuubi, but I need to do something before it's too late."_ Due to the confinement of the area it left Naruto with no choice but to go straight in. He was about to go in for the attack until the person that showed up with Itachi, whose name was Kisame, got intervened and swung his wrapped up sword in his path. The result was Naruto inadvertently letting the Rasengan go.

"Sorry but no interfering." excused Kisame that lacked any real sincerity. "Let leave this between the brothers, shall we." Coming up with no way around it, the blond was thinking about how he could get pass the man when spoke up.

"Stay out of this, Naruto." With the wall as support, the young Uchiha pushed himself to his feet. "This is is my fight. Don't get in the way. That goes for you too, Sakura." Even with one of his arms being useless, Sasuke was still determined to continue fighting. "Fight me brother or are you going to run?"

"As you wish." accepted Itachi. "But remember, you asked for this." What followed was a one sided fight between the brothers with the oldest knocking around the younger one.

"_Things haven't changed."_ thought Sasuke. _"Even after training so hard for all this time I haven't caught up to him."_ The fight had gotten to the point that Sasuke wasn't even able to defend himself anymore. _"Has everything I've done has been for nothing?"_

"You're still weak, little brother." voiced Itachi which was similar to what Sasuke had been thinking. "It's because you lack the hatred. Pheraps you need a reminder of why you wish to kill me." In what was similar to what happen with Kakashi, the Shargingan eyes of Itachi changed to the Mangekyo version.

What followed was the young Uchiha began screaming loudly. "Maybe after reliving that event for the next twenty-four hours will help you to become more motivated." Itachi's words went on deaf ears as his brother continued to scream at what he was being forced to see.

**00000000**

The screams were so hard to hear that Sakura was close to covering her ears to block the sound. She could barely keep herself from rushing in and try to help Sasuke as she knew that if she even tried either Itachi or Kisame would likely kill her without a second though. _"We're completely out of our league against these two. If only Jiraiya were here we might've had a chance."_

At last Sasuke's screams ended but that made Sakura even more worried. Unable to come up with anything she looked over to Naruto in the hopes that he would know how they could save their teammate. What she saw though was the boy going through some kind of change. His eyes flicker from blue to red and his short blond hair started to lengthen and fiery orange. _"What in the world is going on?"_ Moments later the Haruno girl would begin to get her questions answered.

**00000000**

"_That's it. I'm not going to stand by and do nothing."_ As that was going on, Naruto took notice that he was close to transforming into Fox but could care less. _"Why should I stop it? They already know about my secret. So why not let them see what they came after?"_ Making his decision he started to transform.

This didn't go unnoticed as everyone but the catatonic Sasuke had their attention on him. However, like with his Rasengan, Kisame got in front of him and wung his sword without actually hitting him. Not long after Naruto's transformation was left incomplete and returned to his normal form. He tried to become Fox but nothing happen. _"What the hell? What did he do to me?"_

"What's the matter? Can't use any chakra?" questioned Kisame who already knew the answer. "You can thank Samehada for that. My sword has the ability to devour the chakra of whoever it's swung at." To add to the confusion, the sword was seemingly moved underneath its wrapping as though it was alive.

"Samehada seems to like your chakra. Not surprising, seeing as who you are. What do you think, kid?" Naruto didn't say a word. "What do you say Itachi? This kid could be a problem when we take him. Maybe we should hack off his arms just to be safe."

"That might be wise." considered Itachi. "However, now may not be the time for that." Before it could be asked what he meant by that, the entire hallway changed to what resembled as flesh. Along with it, Sasuke was sucked into the fleshy walls. "A clever move you did. What I would expect from you, Jiraiya."

Just as the Uchiha presumed, Jiraiya emerged from the flesh walls and looked absolutely serious. "You are a piece of work. Using a genjutsu on an innocent woman so it would separate me from who you were really after." From the lack of trying to deny the claim it was safe to presume that had been the case. "I know that your true target was Naruto."

"You're correct." Itachi acknowledged as though it was the simplest thing in the world. "The Akatsuki wishes to use Naruto to accomplish its goals. No one will stop us from taking him. No one will stop us from accomplishing them. Not even you, Jiraiya of the legendary sannin."

"Don't be so sure about that. Have you been wondering where you guys are? We're inside the stomach of the mountain toad. Its stomach acid is strong enough that it can go through anything." Jiraiya stopped what he was saying as he saw how nervous Naruto and Sakura became. "Don't worry you two, you're safe. You on the other hand, that's a different story." Following through with those words, pieces of flesh started to go after Itachi and Kisame.

Realizing that the situation was no longer to their advantage they decided to take their leave. Though they were out of sight there was no way for them to escape. However, a sudden explosion was starting to make Jiraiya think otherwise. Rushing around the corner he saw that one of the walls had a large hole and what seemed like black flames here and there.

"What the hell happen?" wondered Naruto when he saw the damage. Following right behind him was Sakura and she was also surprise at what she saw. Going over, Naruto looked at one of the black flames that were still burning. "What kind of fire is this?"

"Don't touch it." ordered Jiraiya. Pulling out a blank scroll he unrolled before the flame. After doing a few hand signs the flames went into the scroll and was rolled up. _"I'll examine this later."_ "Are you two all right?"

The two genin confirmed their well being but Sakura shifted her attention elsewhere. "What happen to Sasuke?" Jiraiya answered by snapping his fingers which had the Uchiha in question come out from the flesh walls. Once he was out the walls returned to their normal structure. "Is he going to be all right?" While just starting to learn to be a medical shinobi, Sakura knew that Sasuke wasn't in good condition.

"It's hard to tell. Don't know what exactly Itachi did to him." Biting one of his thumbs, Jiraiya preformed a summoning which caused a toad that was the size of a small bull to spear. Securing the unconscious Sasuke on the toad's back he created a shadow clone. "Right now he needs to be sent to the hospital in Konoha so he'll be taken cared of until we get Tsunade."

It was then that the sannin took notice of the real concern that the pink haired girl was showing. "If you want Sakura, you don't have to stay with us. My shadow clone will make sure that Sasuke gets back to the village safely. It wouldn't be much trouble for you to go along."

For a moment it seemed like Sakura was actually considering the offer but shook her head. "Thanks but no. I asked to be a part of this mission and it wouldn't be right to abandon it because of this. Plus, there are things that I need to figure out." When she said that she looked directly toward Naruto and the blond had a feeling that he wasn't going to like it.

**00000000**

"I can't believe that we're running away." After escaping from what could've been their end, Kisame and Itachi had continued to run to create distance from where they came from. "Are we actually going to let the jinchuuriki get away?"

"For now yes." announced Itachi who had taken the lead. "We'll let Naruto Uzumaki go for the time being. Also, I need time to recover from over using my Sharingan." Unseen by his partner, the eyes of Itachi turned from red to their normal black.

**00000000**

"That's everything?" Naruto just nodded his head. "I don't believe it." Sakura disputed. Naruto let out an exhausted sigh and rubbed his temples to help relieve some of the tension. Just as he thought, after leaving the town the group moved to another one, this one being two towns over. As soon as they got everything in order, Sakura practically demanded that he tell her what she saw earlier. So for the next hour he told her everything.

"What's hard to understand? To stop Kyuubi from destroying Konoha, my grandfather sealed it inside of himself. How the seal was done it would make the fox pass on to the next in the bloodline. However, as time went on the demon became more a part of its host. That led to the appearance of my other self." After saying all that Naruto became sheepish. "Okay. I can see your point."

You said that you have one too?" Instead of answering with words, he lifted the bottom of his shirt so that his stomach was exposed. After producing a bit of chakra the seal appeared. Seeing it, Sakura was about to touch it but refrained from doing so. "So that's what keeps the nine-tailed fox from escaping?"

Letting the seal fade, Naruto let his shirt fall down. "Well, more or less. The seal allows Kyuubi's chakra to safely filter into my body. Too bad it also let's the fox to talk to me and it's usually nothing useful." In the back of his subconscious, Naruto could hear the fox growling in annoyance and maybe even disagreeing with the claim. "But he does help once and a while. Though it's mostly because it I die he does since there isn't anyone else he'll be transferred to."

All of this was a bit much for Sakura to comprehend but she wanted to know more. "Who else knows about this? It can't be that many if you tried so hard to keep it a secret."

"If only that was the case." Naruto then started to list the people who knew, using his fingers to count them off. "There's Jiraiya, Tsunade, Shizune, Shikamaru, Kurenai, Orochimaru and who knows how many he told and now apparently this Akatsuki group. Also, there was this girl that I helped save. She only knew about my other self. Basically you could make a club for the people who know my secret."

"Then if it's so much trouble why not just let everyone know?" Sakura wondered. "Wouldn't that make things easier?"

"Come one, Sakura. You're smart enough to know why I haven't done that." Naruto replied in an even tone. "Most of Konoha doesn't like Fox. That goes for the council as well who don't like that there's someone who gets involved in their business that they have no control over. It's why any involvement that I had as Fox has been omitted from reports. Can you imagine what'll happen if everyone knew that Naruto Uzumaki and Fox were one and the same? No thank you. I rather keep it to myself."

By the determination that he had behind those words, Sakura knew that there was no way to change her friend's decision. "If that's the case then I promise to not tell anyone. You got my word that your secret is safe with me." He didn't say anything but it was clear that Naruto was grateful for what she said.

Before anything else could be said or done, Jiraiya entered the room and by how he was acting he was a bit tipsy. "There you two are. How's it going?" Both genin reared back as the smell of liquor was strong on his breath. "You won't believe what I found out?"

"That you're a dirty old pervert and the only girls who'll be with you are ones with questionable virtues?" Naruto responded halfway serious and with a bit of humor behind it.

"No, you smart ass. I discovered where Tsunade is." That quickly got their undivided attention. "She's currently in a place called Tanzaku Town."

**00000000**

"_She's still at it."_ Sighting, Shizune walked over to her sensei and friend, Tsunade. It had been about an hour that she had left and nothing had really changed as the platinum blonde was still sitting in front of a slot machine, putting in a coin after coin. She had been there for so long that the pig TonTon had fallen asleep by the machine.

"Tsunade, you've been in this casino for nearly the entire day. Maybe you should call it a day." The young medical specialist's suggestion went on deaf ears as Tsunade just continued to play the slot machine. The only sign that she even heard Shizune was the side glance that was sent her way.

"_She's been like this ever since we left Konoha after the Third Hokage's funeral without saying anything to anyone."_ recognized the younger woman. _"It was almost as though she wanted to get as far away from the village as possible. Even if Tsunade said that nothing's wrong, it's clear that's not the case and what she's doing now isn't helping. Hopefully something happens that'll help to change things."_ Whether that actually happens or not Shizune would stand by Tsunade's side throughout it all.

**00000000**

"Ah man, my head." It was early the next morning and the three person team was once again on the move. Unfortunately, the leader of the group was a bit out of it. "It feels like my head was use for a kickball."

"Probably would've done you some good if it had." muttered an irritated Naruto. It was known that the by wasn't much of a morning person and what happen the previous day didn't help matters. "Just wondering, how long did you search for information and did you find it before or after you got drunk?" Soon a war of insults started between Naruto and Jiraiya.

From the sidelines, Sakura couldn't but find the scene amusing. _"Who would've thought that a person who has a powerful fox demon inside of them would act like a child? I never would think that such a thing would be in Naruto and deal with the things because of it."_ Remembering what happen yesterday a question came to her.

"Uh, Jiraiya, you said something yesterday that I wanted to ask." Her words put a stop to the bickering that the other two were having. "It sounded as though you knew why the Akatsuki had wanted to get Naruto." That observation even made Naruto curious about that as well. "Could the reason have anything to do with the nine-tailed fox?"

"_Tsunade was right. This girl is quick to pick up on things. Might as well come out and say it. It's something that Naruto needs to hear anyway."_ "What you say is true. Akatsuki are after the Kyuubi that dwells inside of Naruto." Jiraiya acknowledged. "Why they want it isn't know. Most likely they wish to use the fox's vase amount of chakra to establish their dominance."

Seemingly on its own, Naruto's right hand placed itself on top of where the seal was. "Then if that's the case, why have they waited until now to come after me? Why not do it sooner?"

"Likely it's because they didn't know about you until now. I had hoped that they wouldn't come after you. Especially after what happen the last time they came after-" Jiraiya stopped himself from saying the rest but the damage was done. You could see that Naruto was starting to put the pieces together.

"What do you mean by 'last time'? If the Akatsuki didn't come after me until yesterday then that would mean…" Naruto couldn't say the rest as what he was thinking would be more real if he were to actually say it.

"What you're thinking is correct." confirmed Jiraiya. He saw that he might as well come clean. "Akatsuki were the ones that were responsible for your parents' deaths. They were after the nine-tailed fox that was then sealed inside of your father. A long story short, both your parents lost their lives and the fox demon had transferred to into you. None of them knew about that or them having a child. They just assumed that Kyuubi died along with your father."

For his part, Naruto kept quiet and let what he heard to sink in. "I know what you're thinking but you have to realize that you can't go after them. You're nowhere near their level and they'll just get what they want from you." Only thing that showed that the demon host even heard what was said was him tightening the grip on the strap of his pack. You couldn't even see what his expression on his face as he was looking down with his hair blocking the view.

It became a tense few moments as Jiraiya and Sakura didn't know if this was the calm before the storm or what. "Don't worry. I understand." said Naruto. "I'm no match against them and I can't do anything about it right now." While that was said there was no real emotion behind it. It almost seemed as though he was trying to hide what he was really feeling. "Well, let's get going. You said that it'll take most of the day to reach Tazanku Town and I would like to get there before it gets dark." That said Naruto started walking in the direction that they had been heading.

Concerned about how her friend was acting, Sakura wanted to talk with him but was stopped when Jiraiya spoke up. "Let him be. Naruto needs time to sort through everything that he was told and right now it would be best if he did that on his own." Giving in, both Sakura and Jiraiya were on the move again. However, both of them kept a close eye on Naruto as there was no telling what he was thinking or could do next.

**00000000**

"Hurry up Shizune. Let's get moving." spoke Tsuande in an almost demanding voice. "If you don't hurry I'll go on without you." It was anyone's guess if she meant that or not.

Not wanting to find out, Shizune would follow through with that threat, Shizune quicken her stepping while holding onto TonTon. _"What's going on? She was barely responsive then the net she's nearly frantic."_ "Could we at least go see the famous castle that's here before we go?" No reply came from Tsunade as she was looking around for who knows what. _"Something must've happen for her to be acting like she is."_

Shizune hit the nail on the head as there was something that caused the legendary sannin to act like she was but not what she thought it might be. It was when Tsunade was playing the slot machine that she felt it. When she won on the machine the first time she didn't think much of it. But things would change when Tsunade continued to win. Knowing from past experiences what this meant she decided that it was time to leave the town. Although the request made by her first apprentice made that difficult. "Okay. We'll go see the castle but it'll be quick." The sooner they left Tanzku Town the better.

They were near the castle and admittedly it was impressive. That was until a large snake appeared and laid waste to the castle. As most people ran as fast as they could from the scene, Tsunade stayed were she stood. She merely closed her eyes and didn't say anything for a while. "My, isn't this a surprise. You know how to make an entrance, Orochimaru."

Standing not far away was the man in question. He wasn't alone as standing beside him was Kabuto Yakushi. Nothing was said by any of the four as they just looked at one another but were ready to fight if necessary. "It's good to see you again, Tsunade." remarked Orochimaru calmly. "The years have done you well."

Being the medical expert that she was, Tsunade could see that something was off. _"Erratic breathing, sweating heavily and paler skin than usual."_ To add to her diagnosis, she took notice of the bandages that were wrapped around his arms. "Unfortunately the same can't be said about you, Orochimaru. Looks sensei did a real number on you before he died." That remark caused the intent of the fellow sannin to rise to the point that it was felt by everyone.

As soon as it was felt it disappeared as Orochimaru returned to his confident self. "Yes, I paid the price. But not to the same extent as he did." Like with him earlier, Tsunade's intent briefly flared up. "Imagine my surprise when I discovered that the person that I was seeking had abandoned her village for a second time and so soon after the death of our sensei too."

Before a fight could begin, Kabuto got to the reason why they were there. "Please Tsunade. We're in need of your vas medical expertise." That put a momentary stop to any fighting. "We wish for you to heal Lord Orochimaru's arms. You'll be greatly compensated of course."

Tsunade didn't answer with actual words as she chuckled softly. "What do you take me for? There isn't anything that you could offer me anything I would want." She furthered showed her refusal by slamming her fist against a nearby wall. There was so much force behind it that a good portion of it turned into rubble. "You got until the count of ten to get out of here before I make you leave." She then started to count it down.

"_Such freakish strength. Surely don't want to get on her bad side."_ Not wanting that to happen, Kabuto tried to ease the situation. None of it worked as Tsunade continued the countdown and becoming more upset by the second. For her part, Shizune was also ready to go into action if necessary. As all of this was going, Orochimaru stayed calm and compose.

Just as the count of zero was about to be reached, Orochimaru finally did something. Biting hard on one of his fingers, blood began to drip from it. That move did what it was suppose to do as it caused Tsunade to stop. "Even after all these years you still haven't gotten over your fear of blood." That was confirmed as the platinum blonde hadn't moved at all since seeing the red stuff.

No longer being able to stand back and do nothing, Shizune came to her sensei's aid by firing some poison needles. None of them would do any damage as Kabuto deflected all of them. The two would go at it but were stopped just as they were close to stabbing the other in the neck. "What off could you possibly have to give Orochimaru?" Tsunade inquired somewhat calmly after the snake user took his bloody appendage out of view. Even then she was still a bit pale in the face.

"If you do what I ask I'll bring the two precious people of yours back to life." Of all things that could've been said, that wasn't even on the list. "Do you wish to see them again?" Orochimaru continued to persuade the woman. _"Just a little more."_ He knew what buttons to press and was going to use everyone on them.

"Don't listen to this, Tsunade." voiced Shizune as she recognized what was going on. "I know that it sounds tempting but you can't do it. Doing so would be disgracing their memory."

"You don't have to decide now." informed Orochimaru evenly. "We'll return in a week to get your answer. However, to bring someone back to life a human sacrifice is needed. It'll be up to you to find those sacrifices if you accept the offer." With that, both Orochimaru and Kabuto disappeared from the area and the sight of the two medical specialists.

Though the two of them were no longer around, it didn't mean that their presence was gone. Shizune gad calmed down a bit but she was still a little on edge about what had transpired. As for Tsunade, she hadn't moved from where she had been standing and was clutching tightly to her necklace.

**00000000**

"Do you even know where we're going?" questioned an irritated Naruto. The group had arrived at Tanzaku Town later that day and after getting their rooms they looked for Tsunade. Unfortunately their search was turning up nothing. "We've been all over the place and haven't found anything useful."

"I wouldn't be so sure about that." muttered Jiraiya. He was referring to when they checked where the now destroyed castle and discovered a destroyed wall that was similar to Tsunade's handiwork. "Besides, I got a good feeling that we'll find something useful in this place."

"But that's a bar." exclaimed Sakura. "Is it really all right for us to go in?" Jiraiya simply waved off the concern.

"Don't worry. As long as you don't try to order something that you shouldn't then it'll be all right. Anyhow, like I said before, this place looks promising."

"And if you have the opportunity to get drunk and have a little fun with a woman or two would be a nice bonus." Naruto retorted with some humor. Before anything else could be said, the blond started to sniff at something and when done he smirked. "I guess you weren't wrong after all." Not explaining what he meant, he walked into the bar and was followed by Jiraiya and Sakura. When they got in they quickly realize what the boy meant as sitting in one of the booths were both Tsunade and Shizune.

Once initial shock had passed all five of them were now sitting at the same booth where a serious conversation was going to take place. "This is a surprise. Wonder what the reason could be." Obviously Tsunade already ha d a few more drinks than she should and it didn't take the flush expression on her face to come to that conclusion.

"You already know." Jiraiya established. He hoped to keep the discussion friendly but still needed to get to the matter at hand. "Have you forgotten that you were supposed to become the Fifth Hokage after the Chunin Exam? You leaving when you did came as a surprise."

""It must've slipped my mind." There was no actual apologizing from the female sannin. If anything, that was more of an excuse and a flimsy one at that. "As for becoming Hokage, I decline." The refusal came as a surprise to mostly everyone as she was basically turning down an offer that others would jump at the opportunity to have.

"To be Hokage is a foolish pursuit and ht eons who wanted to be one are fools as well." None of them noticed that Naruto was starting to grip the table tightly. "Foolishly giving their lives for the village and even dieing if it meant protecting Konoha. In the end it wouldn't last as the fighting would start all over again."

"You can't mean that." spoke Sakura. She could hardly believe that one of the people that she came to greatly admire would say such things. "All the Hokage's worked hard to make Konoha what it is today. The Fourth is a good of that."

For a moment it seemed as though Tsunade had actually thought about what her young student had said. It would soon go away and return to how she was before. "Yes. The Fourth Hokage was a great man. He was arguably the best shinobi that the village has and will ever produce. However, it didn't stop him from getting killed. Like Sarutobi, he thought that giving up their lives would actually make a difference."

Suddenly a loud cracking sound was heard. The source of it was quickly discovered as it was Naruto who seemingly had been holding the table so hard that parts of it broke in his hands. "How dare you. What right do you have to say those things?" As Naruto spoke you could tell that he was trying to contain the anger that he was feeling.

"Those men put their heart and soul in making Konoha the best it could be. If it meant sacrificing themselves than so be it as they knew that what they were doing _would_ make a difference. I wonder how the first two Hokages would feel about your words. After all, aren't you related to them? I bet they would be proud."

Tsunade wasn't taking too kindly to what had been said at the end. It didn't help matters that all the alcohol that she drank was making her quicker to anger. "I'd watch what you say kid. Have you forgotten what happen the last time you said the wrong thing to me?"

"No I haven't." Naruto recalled as he wiped his hands of the broken table pieces. "Unlike you though, I don't back down when there's a difficult situation in front of me." That remark did what it was suppose to do as it made Tsunade even angrier than she already was.

"That's it. Let's settle this outside." Naruto merely shrugged his shoulders before heading for the exit. Not far behind was Tsunade who was actually going t go through with the proposed idea. All the while, both Shizune and Sakura were trying to convince the two to stop.

Soon it was only Jiraiya left sitting in the booth. He would then say something that helped simplify how the situation turned out like it did. "This is going to make things more difficult than it already is." Moments later, he went to join the others.

* * *

I hope that you liked the surprises that I had in this chapter. Having Sakura learning Naruto's secret was something I wanted to do for a while since it would allow him to have someone else to depend upon it needed. Don't expect to have other people finding out about the secret in the near future.

Now, as for the discovery that Akatsuki being the ones who were responsible for killing Naruto's parents, that was something that I felt that was needed to be done. The reason is because I wanted to give more of a backstory between Naruto and Akatsuki also to give him more of a reason to want to get rid of them. Tell me what you think by sending a review. Until whenever I update this story again, see ya.


	42. Decision

The next chapter is here and I hope you readers enjoy what's in it. As for the disclaimer, I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Chapter 42:  
Decision

"Sure you want to go through with this, kid?" Standing in the empty pathway in front of the bar were Tsunade and Naruto as they were about ready to have their fight. "Having any second thoughts about what you said?"

For his part, Naruto was ready to fight as he had been earlier. "Not a chance. Besides, don't be too quick to judge. There might be a trick or two up my sleeve." _"At least I hope I so."_ While Naruto was the onle who instigated the fight, it didn't mean that he was certain that he would actually win. _"Who knows? I might get lucky. However, the chances of that are slim."_

**00000000**

"They're actually going to go through with this?" From the sidelines were the three other members of the group. Try as they might they weren't able to stop the fight from happening. That didn't sit well with Sakura as she didn't want to see this. "There's got to be something we can do to stop them."

"Doubt there is." spoke up Shizune who also wasn't happy to see how things turned out. "But when Tsunade makes up her mind it's nearly impossible to change it." _"Doesn't help matters that she's a bit tipsy from all the liquor that she's drank."_

"Naruto's like that as well." added Jiraiya. "He usually acts before thinking. Hopefully he doesn't do something stupid, like turning into Fox. Be hard to explain why he's fighting one of the sannin." It was then that he noticed the shock look on Shizune's face. She then motioned to the third person that was with there. "Don't worry. Sakura knows the truth. Certain circumstances resulted in her learning it." Sakura nodded her head in support at what had been said. "Now we can only hope that those two get whatever issues out of the way and don't kill each other in the process."

**00000000**

Thinking of what the least expected plan of attack that would catch her off guard, Naruto actually charged straight ahead with kunai at hand. The hopes of catching Tsunade by surprise would go down the drain as she simply avoided the swipe and flicked him in the forehead. Ordinarily that wouldn't do any real damage but due to her inhuman strength caused him to be knocked back.

"_Damn that strength of hers. It felt as though I was hit with several punches at once."_ He couldn't see it but a red welt was forming where Naruto was hit. _"Guess I'll need to come up with a strategy. That's easier said than done."_ Again grabbing a kunai he threw it as fast as he could.

It wouldn't do any damage as it was caught in between Tsunade's fingers. "Is that all you got?" She sounded like she was becoming bored. "If so then you should give it up while you can." Instead of saying some kind of retort, Naruto actually smiled. Before it could be asked what that was about, Tsunade noticed something that was included with the kunai that had been thrown. In the loop of it was a small flash bomb.

Moments later it exploded in blinding light. The flash wasn't around for long but when it did go away everyone was greeted by the sight of four Narutos. Despite this Tsunade didn't seem all that concern. "Using shadow clones to get the numbers advantage I see. Why don't you try something that's original?"

"Oh, that's something since your method of dealing with things is by using that inhuman strength of yours." Only sign that remark got to the woman was a slight twitch of the eye. "Besides, you might be surprise how this turns out. Going without warning, three of the four Narutos went in for the attack. Even with the number advantage, they couldn't get the upper hand against the sannin as she continued to avoid getting hit.

When she seemingly had gotten fed up with the situation, she destroyed the clones one at at a time until only one Naruto remained. "Then there was one. I must say that I'm not surprise." Like before, Naruto just smiled. Sticking his right arm out he used his left hand to bring in chakra into the other. Soon the chakra formed into a sphere that was smaller than a basketball. Immediately Tsunade recognized what it was. _"It can't be. There's no way that he can know how to do that jutsu."_

**00000000**

"That jutsu. It's the…" Leaving the rest of it unsaid, Shizune looked over to the only person that give her any answers. "You taught him that?"

Jiraiya gave the young woman a smile that kind of already gave away the answer. "It would seem like it." He almost started to boast but was able to keep himself from doing so. "But keep an eye on the fight. Something tells me that the kid has more up his sleeve than he's letting on."

While that was going on, Sakura didn't say anything. She didn't fully understand what the two of them were talking about and now wasn't probably the time to ask. _"I don't care who wins. I just want the two of them stop before either of them getting hurt."_

**00000000**

Noticing the surprise, Naruto took the opportunity to attack. He was a few feet from hitting with the Rasengan when Tsunade got over the shock as she slammed her fist to the ground. The result being that it caused the ground to break apart. It also made Naruto to lose his footing and fall down which inadvertently let the Rasengan disburse.

Before he could get up she was already in front of him and in position to give him another super strength flick to the forehead. "Nice surprise but it's over. Do you give up?"

"Oh, it's over all right." murmured Naruto. "But who said that was my _only_ surprise?" With a smile on his face he disappeared in a puff of smoke, revealing that it had been a shadow clone all along. Tsunade tried to find where the real one was and it wasn't until she noticed the three observes looking at something behind her did she have an idea. Turning around she quickly spotted Naruto charging in but was shocked at what she saw.

Spinning around his right arm was what seemed to be wind. It almost resembled a blade as it spin around the boy's arm. Unlike with the Rasengan, she didn't do anything to stop his charge but maybe it wouldn't be needed. As Naruto came in, the attack was slowly dwindling away. That wasn't the only thing as it appeared like the chakra and wind was cutting into his arm. It must've been painful as Naruto couldn't keep the grimaces of pain from showing on his face. Soon the attack would be completely gone and everyone could see that.

Before it could happen though, Naruto was able to get in close enough and wing in with it. The attack would disappear then but not before it managed to graze Tsunade's arm. The wound wasn't that serious but it was serious enough to leave a shallow cut. Going down to a knee, Naruto clutched his bloody right arm. Without it having to be said, this fight was over.

Concern about his condition, Shizune hurried over and started to treat Naruto's injuries. As she did she noticed that even with his quick healing, the gashes in his arm were slowly closing up. She wasn't the only one to see this as Tsunade recognized what was going on.

"_That move he used, it was a wind type jutsu. However, it would seem like he hasn't mastered it since he couldn't keep it from nearly ripping his arm to shreds."_ She was so focus on her thoughts that she didn't notice until then that Sakura had came over and healed the cut that she received on her own arm.

Giving an appreciated nod to her second apprentice, the sannin got to the matter at hand. "You're the one who taught him those jutsus. Am I right, Jiraiya?" The man in question was standing in the same place as before and wasn't try to deny the accusation. "What would've possessed you in teaching him those kinds of jutsus?"

"Well, he practically insisted in learning the Rasengan after doing a bastardize version of one." A smile would slowly come over Jiraiya's face. "He basically has it mastered as you saw. As for the other one, he recently found out that his nature type is wind. I just figured that he should learn one wind jutsu after finding out."

"Yeah and look at what good it did." Tsunade was of course referring to how hurt Naruto's arm had become. The gashes had just recently healed up and he was using a cloth to wipe away the blood. "What's the point of teaching him that jutsu when it does more damaged to himself then the person's he's using it again? Not like he'll be able to use it correctly."

"How can you be so sure?' questioned Naruto. He was completely recovered from his injuries but appeared to still be in a bad mood. "Give me time and I'll have that jutsu down."

When that was said a strange gleam showed itself in Tsunade's eyes. "You don't say. Then let's make a wager. I'll give you one week to master that wind jutsu. If you do it I'll go back to Konoha willing and I'll even give you this." What she meant was the necklace that she never took off. Shizune tried to make her sensei reconsider but was ignored. "But if you can't then your secret becomes public knowledge." That put a halt to whatever remark that Naruto thought about saying. "So what do you say? Going to accept or not?"

There was no immediate response from the demon host as he was deciding if he should actually accept. "Fine, I accept. In a week I'll show you that I can use that jutsu correctly. Maybe I'll go ahead and demonstrate it on you." Tsunade merely scoffed as she took her leave and was soon joined by Shizune. Sakura had been conflicted on what she should do but finally decided to stay with Naruto and Jiraiya as there was no telling how Tsunade would react by her tagging along.

"You may have put your foot in your mouth, kid." commented Jiraiya as Naruto was only a few feet away from him. "Are you really expecting to learn that move within a week?"

"Have to wait and see." Naruto started to leave the area as well but stopped to say one last thing. "By the way, next time you see your old friend, ask her why she's been hanging around with snakes." With that said, he took his leave.

**00000000**

"Mind if I take a seat?" After hearing Naruto's cryptic words, Jiraiya went to look for Tsunade and found her at some small stand. Trading words with Shizune as she let he sat down beside his former teammate.. Neither of them said anything for a while as they just drank a few cups of sake. While the mood that was over them wasn't necessarily uncomfortable it wasn't bearable either. Things would continue to go that way until Jiraiya spoke up.

"You're a real piece of work you know that?" No hostility was in what he said as he kept it casual. "You making a bet like that with those kinds of stipulations." Only sign that the platinum blonde had a problem with the topic was a small scowl showing on her face. "I mean, you know how Naruto feels about keeping his secret." The scowl just got worse. "I knew that you were a glutton for gambling but to actually make a bet with a kid is a bit much. Probably doesn't help matters that he somewhat resembles Nawa-"

"Shut up already." interrupted Tsunade before Jiraiya could say anymore. "He agreed to the terms so he's to blame just as much as I would." Couldn't be figured out if he she was trying to convince him or herself. "Serves him right if he isn't able to back up what he says. Why was he so upset anyway?"

"Before we showed up, he was told about what happen to his parents." There was no need to explain any further. "We happen to encounter two members of the group that was responsible and both Naruto and it lead to him being told the truth. He's been holding in what he has been feeling about all of this until he snapped at you. What you said about the Hokages didn't help matters." Tsunade simply looked away.

Again there wasn't anything said between them and like before, Jiraiya was the one to get the conversation going. "What was the conversation between you and Orochimaru?" His question was so unexpected that it put a halt to what Tsunade was doing. "Apparently while checking out the destroyed castle, Naruto managed to get the scents of both you and Orochimaru at that same place. Care to explain why that is?"

"It was nothing really." Tsunade informed off handedly. "Just happen to run into him and traded words before getting him to lave. With the condition that he's currently in it wasn't that difficult." She said nothing more as she just resumed drinking.

For his part, Jiraiya didn't seem to believe the explanation that was given but didn't voice his opinion. "I won't ask you about it anymore but let's make something clear." Gone was the casual, easy going perverted man and in his place was a man that was dangerously serious. "If you do anything that endangers Konoha I'll not rest until I make you pay."

Tsunade didn't even bat an eye to that not so subtle threat. For the rest of the night the two of them continued to drink. While it wasn't said, it was clear that there was tension between them and neither of them knew what could be done to get pass it.

**00000000**

"_One week. I only have a week to get this jutsu to work."_ It was that line of thinking that continually to go through Naruto's head as he continued to train. He had chosen an area a few miles away from town that with the exception of a couple barren trees and boulders, the place was deserted. "You know that you don't have to stay here." Naruto informed to the only other person there. "You could just go back to the rooms and get some rest."

The person there simply waved their hand in disinterest. "Don't worry. It's all right. Besides, it's probably a good idea to have someone here in case you get too hurt." What was said was that as Naruto used the Wind Edge, the damage that occurred during the fight with Tsunade repeated itself on his arm. It wasn't as bad as it had been the first time but it didn't mean that it wasn't painful. "I mean, who better to heal you than a medical specialist."

"Well, despite you being a newbie, you've obviously got a knack for it. I won't be a surprise that sooner rather than later you'll be a highly skilled medical shinobi, Sakura." Naruto again went for the wind jutsu, failing to notice that what he said deeply touched the pink haired girl. Sakura had already realized that at times her blond haired friend knew the right thing to say and she couldn't help but be thankful for that.

Of course it didn't mean that he never had moments of idiocy as she saw the jutsu fade away before it could be used. The result being was his arm smashing into a tree with a sickening thud. Letting out a sigh, Sakura went over to check on her friend who was cradling his hurt arm. "You're a real glutton for punishment, you know that?" A slight chuckle was her only response. "Still thinking about what Shizune said last night?"

What Sakura meant by that was shortly after getting to their room, Shizune showed up. She tried to convince Naruto to back out of the bet but her plea went on deaf ears. The young medical specialist would then tell the story behind the necklace and the connection it had with the tragedies in Tsunade's life. While the story had been a sad one, it didn't stop Naruto's determination as he headed for the door. Before leaving the last thing he said was that he was going to train.

"Not really." Naruto answered truthfully. "What happen to granny Tsunade's life is tragic and the Third dieing was sad but it doesn't justify her deserting Konoha like she did. Isn't like she's the only one who lost any love ones." It didn't have to be said that when he said that, Naruto was thinking about his parents who died when he was just a baby. "Right now though, I need to master the Wind Edge. I believe that it'll be useful for what I need to do."

Now with his arm healed once again, Naruto went for the jutsu again. Focusing his wind chakra he had it encircle around his right arm. _"Concentrate and keep the flow of chakra from becoming unbalanced."_ Keeping that in mind, Naruto once again rushed at one of the trees.

When he was close to the intended target he swung him arm in. Unlike before, the Wind Edge didn't fade away and actually started to cut into a good portion of the tree before stopping. _"Wasn't perfect but it's a start."_ Naruto started to yank on his arm to free it when he discovered something. "Uh, could you give me a hand, Sakura? I seem to be…stuck."

Despite her best efforts, Sakura had to laugh at the situation. "You can be a real knucklehead, you know that?" It was all in good humor as she went over to help her trapped friend.

**00000000**

"The deadline is almost here." Back at their hideout, Orochimaru and Kabuto remained there as they awaited for the day that there meeting. "Do you believe that everything will go smoothly?"

Kabuto's question was of course directed toward his leader, Orochimaru who was sitting on his throne. He hardly said a word since coming back and that wasn't necessarily a good thing. "It's hard to say. There's a chance that the meeting could go either way. However, I think that Tsunade will do as requested."

"And if she refuses?" Although he rarely showed it, Kabuto couldn't help but become a little uneasy by the smile that came over the snake sannin's face.

"Then I'll just have to force her to heal my arms. Either way I'll have my revenge on Konoha and no one will prevent me from achieving it."

**00000000**

"Thank you so much for doing this Shizune." acknowledged a thankful Sakura. "I truly appreciate you helping me with my training. Hopefully it's not too much trouble." Her concerns were eased away when the woman waved it off.

"Don't worry, Sakura. It's no problem helping you train." The type of training they were doing was medical ninjutsu as it was sewing up long and jagged cuts that had been made on the fishes that they got. "I know that I may be a substitute but I'm nearly as good as Tsunade is."

The mentioning of that name turned the mood of the situation to a somber one. Neither one said anything as they didn't know what to say. Finally it would be Sakura to speak up. "I hope that I'm not crossing any boundaries by asking this but why has Tsunade bas been acting like she is? Does it have something to do with what you told me and Naruto?"

Shizune didn't give any immediate reply as she sigh while trying to figure about how to explain it. "That's part of the reason. However, you got to understand that when the Third Hokage died during the invasion from Suna and Oto she lost someone that was dear to her. When that happened it reminded her of all the pain that she felt when Nawaki and Dan." She wasn't the only one as Shizune still felt sad ever her uncle's unfortunate death. "It became too much for her to take so she left the village and to make sure she doesn't do anything reckless, I went with her. Hopefully you can understand in someway."

"Maybe I can." Sakura truthfully answered. "I haven't lost anyone close to me but the thought of it makes me sick to my stomach. Hopefully she'll be able to get pass this depression of hers."

"Silently, Shizune agreed with that. Also, she happened to notice that Sakura had nearly healed the entire cut that had been made on the fish. _"She's truly amazing. Already she has progressed this far in such a short amount of time. If this continues she'll become an incredible medical shinobi in a few years. I better watch it or she'll surpass me someday."_ "How about we finish up this training and call it a day?" An enthusiastic nod of the head was Sakura's sign of agreement to the suggestion.

**00000000**

In an area that once had leads of trees and boulders there was only a few left and the remains of others. The reason for that was Naruto who was leaning up against a partially destroyed boulder in the hopes of catching his breath. With the exception of being exhausted he seemed to be in okay condition.

Once composing himself for a bit, Naruto again went for the Wind Edge. Going over to one of the few remaining trees he tried to hit with the wind jutsu. Unfortunately, just as it was about to hit, the chakra that was around his arm faded, leaving his fist vulnerable as it struck hard against the tree. Letting out a series of curses, Naruto clutch his hurt arm as he fell to his knees.

"_This isn't working. The deadline is tomorrow and I still haven't mastered this jutsu."_ He tried to get back to his feet but wasn't able to. _"I'm so exhausted that I can't even stand up."_

"_**Are you really that surprised?"**_ questioned Kyuubi. _**"For the past week you've done hardly anything except work on that jutsu. Even with your extraordinary stamina and reserves, it's hard to believe that you've lasted this long without passing out."**_ By the tone of voice, Naruto knew that his demonic tenant wasn't trying to over promote what was said.

"_Be careful, it almost sounds as though you're starting to be concern."_ What came from that were angry growls of denial. _"Yeah, I know. You're only concern because if I die so will you. There's nothing to worry about. I won't be dieing anytime soon. Not when I have so much unfinished business."_ That last part was directed toward the organization known as Akatsuki.

"_**Don't do anything foolish, boy."**_ warned Kyuubi. _**"Like that old fool told you, you're not strong enough to go against them. I know you want to get them back for killing your parents but I'll be suicide if you went after them now, even with the power boost when you become Fox."**_ Reluctantly, Naruto had to agree with what he heard. _**"For now we have to wait until the opportunity presents itself."**_

Unable to help himself, Naruto started to laugh. _"Now isn't this something. Who would've thought that we would agree on something so easily?"_ There wasn't any response from Kyuubi but the fox was in agreement with his host. _"Apparently having a common enemy will do that."_

It was about then that Naruto acknowledged how tried he was. _"I guess even I got limits to where I become completely exhausted."_ He tried to get back to his feet but couldn't. _"Maybe a short nap wouldn't be so bad."_ Naruto didn't think about anything further as he became unconscious.

**00000000**

"_Tomorrow's the day."_ That thought was the main thing going through Tsunade's head as she made her way to her room. _"At least there won't be any interference from Jiraiya when I make my decision."_ She was referring to the powder that she snuck into his drink moments ago. It would keep him out of the picture for a while.

"Lady Tsunade, you're here." exclaimed Shizune that broke the older woman from her train of thought. Her first apprentice was standing at the door of their room. Noticing the slight concern on her face made Tsunade hurry over a little quicker.

Going inside she saw that also in there was her other apprentice, Sakura who was sitting beside a bed that lay what all the commotion was all about. Unconscious on the bed was Naruto and looked pretty ruffed up. His clothes were torn up but at least he was breathing calmly.

"We went to check on him and we found him laying on the ground." Sakura informed. She was concern about her friend and wasn't trying to hide it. "Also, nearly the whole area was destroyed. It was like a tornado went through it."

"Probably as a result of using that wind jutsu." Tsunade surmised. "Overall, he appears to be suffering from chakra depletion. However, his right arm is another matter." What she meant was that Naruto's arm was wrapped completely in bandages and already there were places that blood was seeping through. _"He probably didn't stop for the entire week. Jiraiya was right. I'm a feel for making such a bet."_ "It's doubtful that he'll wake up no sooner than two days."

That relieved the two medical specialists but that got Shizune to get to the matter of another situation. "Tsunade, you're not really going to go through with _his_ proposal tomorrow, are you?" No answer from the woman which didn't sit well with the brown haired woman. "Why don't you answer me? I implore you to not go. If you do, then I'll-"

"You'll do what?" challenged Tsunade with some hostility behind it. "Have you forgotten who you're talking to?" Before she could do anything, Shizune was struck by her with enough force that it caused her to pass out.

Rushing over to Shizune's side, Sakura checked on her. "Why did you do that Tsunade?" Again no explanation was given. "What did she mean the proposal tomorrow? Does it have anything to do with why Naruto was so irritated with you?"

There seem to be slight hesitation from Tsunade about whatever she was thinking of doing but it quickly went away. "I apologize, Sakura. This is something I need to do and I can't have anyone you get in the way." She followed that up by going over and pinching a spot on the back of Sakura's neck. That caused the pink haired girl to pass out where she joined Shizune on the floor.

With no further distractions, Tsunade headed for the door. Before leaving, she glanced over to the three unconscious people in the room. "I'm sorry. You three and Jiraiya may hate me for what I've done but it's something that I have to do. Maybe someday you'll understand." Wasting no more time, Tsunade closed the door and started to make her way to her desired destination.

**00000000**

"Come on you two. Wake up already." Slowly opening her eyes, Sakura saw that the person that was talking was an awaken Naruto. "It's about time. For a while I thought that I may have to smack you."

"Good thing you didn't." muttered Sakura as she got to a sitting position. "If you did I would've hit you back." When some of the fuzziness wore off, it allowed Sakura to remember something. "What about Shizune? Is she all right?" Now she was fully awake.

"She's fine." He pointed over to the foot of one of the beds where Shizune sitting against, trying to regain her bearings. "Would one of you tell me what's going on? I wake up to see the two of you on the ground and for some reason Shizune is surprise that I'm fine after a full night of sleep. So mind explaining?"

Sakura was confused by that revelation as Tsunade said that it would be two days until Naruto woke up. _"It must be thanks to the nine-tailed fox."_ "Actually, I would like to know as well." stated Sakura seriously. "Mind telling us what's going on with Tsunade?" The question had been directed toward Shizune. "What is this meeting that you two talked about and this so called proposal?" As with her mentor, Shizune said nothing.

"Does it have something to do with Orochimaru?" inquired Naruto out of the blue. While Shizune didn't say it, the surprise look on her face was enough to confirm his suspicion. "I already knew that you two encounter him but I don't know why. Care to shed some light on that?"

Again Shizune was wondered whether she should explain or not. Instead of giving a reply, she headed for the window. "There's no time for that. The two of you stay here." Shizune got about halfway out when a kunai flew and missed her face by inches. Looking toward to where it came from, she saw a staggering Jiraiya.

"She didn't something to my drink." reported the sannin while leaning against the wall. Hurrying over to the window, Naruto and Sakura saw what was happening. "Shizune, you better start explaining."

**00000000**

Standing at the designated location, Tsunade waited for the arrival of the other person. She didn't have to wait long as walking over was the still armless but confident Orochimaru. "Well, have you made your decision?" You could practically hear the smugness in his voice.

Giving her former teammate an emotionless stare, Tsunade said nothing for a moment before finally giving an answer. "Yes I have."

* * *

Yes I know that I had things that were similar to how they were done in the actual series but I hope that the twist that I did throughout it made a difference. I'll try to make the following chapter be more different.

As for the "Wind Edge" jutsu is somewhat I got from fellow fanfic writer, "Tellemicus Sundance" and his "Legacy of the Rasengan" stories. Also, since I had Naruto already knowing how to do the Rasengan and discovering what his chakra nature was, leanring a wind type jutsu was a good idea to go with.


	43. Converge

Short and simple author notes. Things are going to heat up in this chapter and I hope it isn't a disappointment to those who are reading. As for the disclaimer, I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Chapter 43:  
Converge

"That can't be true." disputed Sakura. They were told about the offer that Orochimaru gave Tsunade and she still couldn't believe it. "You must be mistaken. There's no way that she would actually agree to do such a thing."

"I'm afraid that's the case." established Jiraiya. His body was better than it was when he got back to the others but was still somewhat sluggish. "What we need to concern ourselves about getting there before she heals Orochimaru's arms. If that happens then he'll certainly try and destroy Konoha again." That seemed to fuel everyone as they quicken their pace to where the unwanted bargain was supposed to be made. Each of them thinking along the lines of getting there before it was too late.

**00000000**

"Why have you betrayed me, Tsunade?" asked Orochimaru. He sounded genially surprised by what his former teammate tried to do. "I'm grateful for you innerving when you did Kabuto."

Standing behind the pale skinned sannin was Kabuto Yakushi, the person who stopped what was going to happen. "It wasn't hard to see what she was planning. By the intent that was behind her chakra she intended in kill then healing." There was no denying from the woman in question as that was exactly what she was trying to do.

"I would've done it, Tsunade. I would've brought the both of them back to life." It almost sounded like Orochimaru was being honest. "I even promised to leave Konoha alone if you healed me."

A seldom expression appeared on Tsunade's face as she thought about what she was going to say. "You're a terrible liar Orochimaru. Even though I knew that you were lying I was still willing to do what you wanted." She empathizes what she was talking about by wrapping her arms around herself. "But that boy, he reminded me of something that I wanted to forget."

No longer was there any sorrow on Tsunade's face as it was replaced by absolute determination. "So instead of healing your arms Orochimaru, I've decided to end your life here and now." There was no hesitation that was once there was before, as she was ready to back up her declaration.

For his part, the look of surprise was gone as there was now deadly seriousness on the face of Orochimaru. "Negotiations appear to have failed. How unfortunate. Now I have to persuade you to do as I ask by force." No response was given on the other end as Tsunade stared defiantly at her former teammate.

Within a blink of an eye she closed the gap between them. But the attempted strike that followed did nothing with the exception of wrecking the surrounding area as both Orochimaru and Kabuto leapt to safety. "Come to think of it, we haven't fought each other before."

"You're one to talk. I'm going to be the one who's going to fight her." remarked Kabuto. "Perhaps we should move this fight somewhere that's not so confined." Nothing was said by the paled skinned sannin but it was clear that he was in agreement with what had been said. "What's more I noticed some interesting people when I was after her apprentice."

"Care to elaborate?"

"One of them was another former teammate of yours. The other was someone you encountered before." That was all that Kabuto said as the two of them had avoided another attack on them.

Orochimaru couldn't think of who that one person that had been left unnamed but instantly knew who he meant by the other person. _"So, Jiraiya's here as well. This may complicate things further." _Putting that thought away the two Oto members left for a more suitable location to fight. There was no need to worry about making sure that Tsunade was following them as she was only a few steps behind them.

**00000000**

"This place resembles a war zone." That comment from Sakura was an understatement as the group arrived at the area where not longer ago Tsunade and Orochimaru had their 'meeting'. "What could've happen?"

"Tsunade is what happen." answered Jiraiya. "Judging by the destruction it looks like she responded negatively to the offer." From the side a sigh of relief could be heard from Shizune. "Now we just have to fine where they might've gone."

The solution to that problem would be resolved as TonTon found Tsunade's discarded coat. Getting a couple of sniffs he started to head off in a particular direction. Understanding what was going on and having no other leads the group followed the animal familiar in the hopes that it would lead them to the person that they were looking for.

**00000000**

In a more wide open area were no only Tsunade but also Orochimaru and Kabuto. After the chasing game came to an end a fight happened but it wasn't between the two sannin. The fight was between Tsunade and the right hand man of the Oto leader, Kabuto Yakushi. By first appearance alone it would seem that the female member of the legendary three shinobi had the clear cut advantage. However, as time went by that would no longer the case.

It started when Kabuto used chakra scalpels to get the early advantage. Tsunade would utilize her vase medical expertise to mess with his nervous system. Not being outdone, Kabuto showed that he wasn't no slouch in his own right as he figured out how to make up for the obstacle and was moving about again. Just as the fight was going to resume, it was interrupted by the arrival of the others.

You could cut the tension with a knife as a stare down between all those there. "Well, this is a surprise. It must be a special occasion. To have all three sannin at the same place, at the same time is something that hasn't happen in so many years." established Jiraiya. "You look good Orochimaru. You've been busy." He was keeping a passive tone.

"So have you." said Orochimaru in the same manner as his former teammate. "After all, you've been keeping an eye on me ever since I abandoned that pathetic village." He looked over at who else was there and when he spotted Naruto he grinned. "Things are even more interesting. You actually brought the jinchuuriki of the nine-tailed fox."

Naruto didn't know what was meant by the word jinchuuriki but that was something to think about later. "So this is what Orochimaru really looks like. Honestly, I was expecting more." The blond was trying to get at the pale skinned sannin with his words. "By the way, how's you're hand from the Chunin Exam? Probably forgot about it since your run in with Sarutobi." His further taunting did the trick as a scowl appeared on Orochimaru's face and a slight raise in killer intent was felt from him.

"Please Lord Ochimaru. Allow me to deal with him." suggested Kabuto. "There's no need for you to waste your time with such an insignificant person." That seemed fine with Naruto as he motioned for him to bring it but was shoved aside by Tsunade.

"Get out of my way. This is my fight." Again the two medical specialists went at it but it would come to an abrupt end when Kabuto cut his own hand with a kunai. How it happened caused his blood to spray over the face of Tsunade's face. Whatever she planned to do was thrown out the window as she was literally frozen in place.

"Might be somewhat of an underhanded move but at least I was able stop one of the sannin." The former Konoha, now Oto shinobi followed that up by slamming his fist into said woman's face, but was luckily caught by Shizune. "Now with that out of the way, it's time to deal with that other unimportant problem." Kabuto looked for Naruto and it wouldn't take long as said person was coming straight at him and he wasn't alone as there were three shadow clones trailing not far behind.

"_How predictable. He's obviously going to attack on the side of my injured hand."_ As expected the Narutos went at him, focusing directly for his injury. With very little effort, Kabuto eliminated three of the duplicate boys, leaving only the one that he had in his grasp behind. "This was depressing. I was hoping that you would at least pose a slight challenge. Looks like I overestimated your abilities." Again he formed a chakra scalpel and used it by stabbing the younger boy in the heart.

Naruto squirmed for a while before becoming lifeless. Kabuto was about to toss aside like a piece of paper when the body suddenly exploded in a cloud of smoke. Before he had the chance to fully register what happened, the ground at his feet broke apart and revealed another Naruto. Recovering enough from the shock he leaned away from the attended blow but still got clipped in the chin.

Biting back the pain Kabuto kicked blond back to his group. Pulling his hand away from his chin he saw that there was a good amount of blood on it. _"Maybe I was wrong. Perhaps this'll be more interesting than I originally thought."_

"You're certainly bleeding a lot Kabuto." commented Orochimaru. Understanding what his lord was talking about, Kabuto went to the Oto leader's side as he bit the bandages off from his left arm. Using some of the blood that he spilled he smeared some of it on Orochimaru's summoning tattoo. What came next were two large snakes appearing and on top of each of them was one of the Oto shinobi.

"_Great. Like things weren't going to be hard enough."_ cursed Jiraiya mentally. _"Like things weren't going to be bad enough we now have to deal with these snakes as well."_ Looking behind him he saw how his former partner was doing. _"Tsuadne's is no condition to fight. Need to come up with some kind of plan and fast."_ Doing as he thought Jiraiya luckily was able to come up with a plan of sorts but had to know something first. "Shizune, can you cure me from the drug that I was given?" His question was said as quietly as possible so it wouldn't be heard.

"Sorry but I can't." Shizune regrettably informed, being equally as quiet as possible. "Tsunade was the one who made it and I don't think that she ever made an antidote. I was able to get rid of some of the affects but you won't be able to use your chakra properly."

Try as he might, Jiraiya let out a small curse. "Then I guess I'll have to fight as is." He tried to sound confident but a slight bit of uncertainty could be detected. "Shizune, you go against the guy in the glasses. I'll handle Orochimaru. Naruto, you and Sakura stay back and protect Tsunade." The plan was fine with the short haired medical shinobi but Naruto didn't like the job that he was assigned.

"Why do I have to be the backup? I've got a score to settle with both of them and this is my chance settle them." Naruto was about to go in, not thinking about becoming Fox, to attack both enemies. Unfortunately Jiraiya thought otherwise.

"No. You're not in the same league with either of them. So do as I say and help Sakura protect Tsunade." Naruto wanted to make an argument but when he received from the man it stopped whatever it was that he had planned to say. "Also, if one of them tried to get her I believe that you'll be able to hold them off for a few moments until help arrives."

"That's enough stalling." Following that unspoken signal the two giant summoned snakes went for what could be their next meal. "I'll handle Jiraiya. You deal with the rest Kabuto." With that order being given, Orochimaru and the snake that he was riding veered to the side to go after its desired prey. As for Kabuto, he jumped off the snake that he was on and went off to take care of Shizune while the summoning dealt with the rest. Basically the multi battle had begun.

**00000000**

"Damn it. We got to move." Naruto's suggestion was an understatement as the giant snake was coming for them. Grabbing the still stunned Tsunade, both Naruto and Sakura tried to get to safety but the snake was right upon them. With jaws open wide it was prepared to make them its latest meal. Being the closet, it went after Naruto who acted without thinking when he shoved the two other women out of the way as the snake closed its mouth around the boy.

"Naruto!" Landing safely on the ground Sakura wanted to try and help her friend but remembered what she was supposed to do. "Come on, Lady Tsunade. Naruto needs help." Despite her pleas they got no response from the female sannin. _"I never saw her like this before. She's completely out of it. I heard that she had trouble with blood but I didn't think that it would be this bad."_ In the hopes that it would help in someway Sakura tried to get rid of the blood that was still on Tsunade but it did little to help.

Shifting her attention away from that she looked over to the summoning as it was about to come after them next. Before it could it started to act peculiar. The cause was that its mouth was being forced open as Naruto and a shadow clone struggled to keep the jaws from closing. "Sorry, I was almost eaten by a snake before and I'm not interested in going through that again."

The two Narutos were starting to give in to the pressure of the mouth trying to close in on them. Just as the jaws were about to snap down on them one of the blonds pushed the other to safety. Without the extra support the snake finally was able to close its mouth on one of the Narutos. As for the other, it crashed to the group like a sack of bricks. When it didn't disperse it confirmed that it was the original.

What happen next came as a surprise as the giant snake's head suddenly exploded. There was enough power behind the explosion that the head was completely gone and all that remained was a bloody stump connected to the body. "That's what I love about the Exploding Clone Jutsu." exclaimed Naruto as he pulled himself into a sitting position, all the while his left hand hung limply at his side. Apparently he suffered an injury when he fell. "It's always a blast when they're used."

**00000000**

"That must've been hard to watch. I mean, you're sure fond of your snakes." Jiraiya's remarked didn't get any real response. The two sannin and former teammates had gone after one another as soon as the battle began. Taking care of the snake wasn't that difficult as it remained stuck by a jutsu that created a swamp underneath it. Dealing with Orochimaru was another matter.

Although he had no use of his arms he proved to still a formable opponent as he was able to attack with his feet and actually stretch his neck so that he could bite him. Add to the fact that Jiraiya wasn't able to fight at his full ability due to the drug that was still in his system. It was basically a standstill between them and seeing that neither of them would gain the upper hand on the other they stood on the immobile snake and watched as the other battles took place.

"It matters not. There are more snakes where he come from." replied Orochimaru as he really didn't care about the summoning. "Truly that boy is more interesting than I thought he was. However, that's to be expected since what he has sealed within him." He would then give the other man a sneer. "But you would know that better than me. After all, you're his legal guardian."

"_He knows about that. Apparently he's got people who're good at getting information."_ Jiraiya surmised. "Don't be so quick to judge. What he's done is all him, not his tenant. I thought that you would know the difference since you ran into him in the Forest of Death. What heard worse I wonder. Being ruffed up by a mere genin or that same genin being able to fool you?" That had been directed toward when Naruto a fake scroll to make Orochimaru think that he had actually destroyed his team's scroll.

"Word of advice, don't press your luck with the boy. You may be one of the legendary sannin but push him too far and you'll see how dangerous Naruto can be." Again Orochimaru didn't say anything in response but by what could be seen in his eyes he was a bit interested to see such a thing happen.

**00000000**

Elsewhere, the two medical shinobi continued from the last time that the two of them fought. They went at each other, determined to take out the other. Shizune tried to use the same tried as before where she fired multiple poison needles but all of them were avoided. She even had a cloud of poisonous gas come out of his mouth and when the cloud gone there was no sign of her opponent.

Even though he hadn't complete recovered from his fight with Tsunade Kabuto was able to get the advantage as he attacked from underground and used chakra scalpel to cut the tendons of her ankles. Coming completely out of the ground he gave her blow to the head that caused Shizune to lose consciousness. With her out of the way Kabuto started to make his way toward Tsunade who still in no condition to do anything.

Naruto tried to fight but with his right shoulder seemingly dislocated, making his entire arm useless he was quickly knocked aside to a nearby boulder. In the end the only person that stood between him and his target was Sakura who was trying to valiantly stand her ground. "Step aside, Sakura. If you do then I'll let you go without you getting hurt." Kabuto tried to be reasonable with his suggestion but there wasn't any sign of the girl backing down. "Come on now. Do you actually believe that you have a chance against me? Shizune's a more experienced medical shinobi than you and she was taken cared of. What makes you think that you'll any better?"

That was the thing that was going through Sakura's head as she tried to stand her ground against the person before him. _"He's right. The differences in our skill are obvious. What chance do I have fighting him when he was able to get the best of Shizune and Tsunade?"_ As she tried to think that over she caught sight of Naruto, clutching his injured arm trying to get back up.

"_Look at him. Naruto's injured yet he's still willing to fight. What does that make me when I don't even try to protect that are close to me? I won't back down anymore." _Following that self made vow, Sakura did the hand signs to do the jutsu for the chakra scalpels. _"My chances of winning are slim but I'll do everything I can to make sure that he regrets ever underestimating me."_

For his part, Kabuto didn't seem the least bit concern about the lack of backing down. In fact, he actually seemed to be disappointed. "Don't say that I didn't give you fair warning." Copying her actions he also did the chakra scalpels.

Again there was a battle between two medical shinobi. However, unlike the previous two this one was more of a one-sided fight as Sakura was doing all she could to block or avoid the attempted strikes from the Konoha traitor. Add to the concern that she could only maintain that particular jutsu for a limited time it only made things more challenging.

* * *

That's it for now readers. Hopefully none of you weren't bored by what happened. I promise that the next chapter will have more action than this one did. When that comes out will be in the next few weeks. Until then, see ya.


	44. Unleashed

I'm getting another chapter out and I hope you readers won't be disappointed. Unlike the last few chapters, this one is going to be more action oriented and at the same time reveal something. For the disclaimer, I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Chapter 44:  
Unleashed

"_She's isn't going to last long."_ Naruto's assessment didn't seem that far off as Sakura was doing all she could against the more experienced Kabuto. He tried to get up but stopped when a shooting pain went through his body. _"I've got to do something but with my shoulder like as it is I can't really do anything."_

"_**Then what are you waiting for?"**_ inquired someone that could only be heard in his head. _**"Become Fox and things will shift to our side. No matter what kind of injury you may have."**_ Kyuubi wasn't acting all superior or anything as he was talking rationally.

To be honest what Kyuubi was saying as there was truth behind those words. _"Thanks for the suggestion but no. If I was transformed and I lost my temper there's no telling what'll happen."_ As Naruto said that he leaned against a large boulder. _"Besides, if I were to take them as myself it would be even more of a shot at their pride then simply beating them. Wouldn't you agree?"_ Silence was all he got as a response.

"_But before I do anything, I need to deal with this busted up shoulder of mine."_ He then remembered something that had been taught at the academy. _"This is going to hurt."_ Turning around Naruto took a couple deep breaths then slammed his injured shoulder into the boulder. _"I was right."_ An intense pain went through his body but the desired affect happen as the move popped his shoulder back into place. Moving the arm around there was still twinges of pain. _"Still a little tender but it'll have to do."_

**00000000**

As time went on the fight became even more one-sided as Sakura's chakra reserves started to reach their end as the chakra scalpels started to fade. Finally she reached empty as the jutsu fizzled out. When it was gone it allowed Kabuto to get a clean blow in as he struck her in the left bicep. He followed that up with a palm thrust to the chest which knocked her to the ground right beside Tsunade, who was only now starting to show signs of responding what was going on. Sakura tried to get up but wasn't able to as her left arm hung lifelessly and she was having trouble regaining her breathe.

"Don't bother trying to get up." voiced Kabuto. "Even if you're inexperienced medical specialist you should already realized that I cut the muscles in your arm, making it useless and the blow to your chest will make you unable to regain your breathing for a while." Sakura didn't argue as she knew what he was saying was true. "I should take you out but first things first."

Walking past the immobile pink haired girl he started making his way to Tsunade. When he reached out to her she came out of her shock as she frantically tried to get away from Kabuto. That seemed to disgust the gray haired teen who started to repeatedly kick the woman who was not even able to defend herself. "How pathetic this is. To think that you're one of the actual sannin is an insult to the name. I may as well end this before you put even further shame to the name."

Prepared to back up his words Kabuto was going to hit the finishing blow but was stopped when someone intervened and grabbed his wrist. "Now, now, that's not nice." As Naruto spoke he started to gather chakra into his free hand. "Looks like you need to be taught a lesson." Gathering the chakra that he wanted Naruto thrust the Rasengan at the opposition.

Seeing the possible danger of whatever that was, Kabuto got his arm free and try to create distance. He didn't get far enough as the Rasengan got him on the side. While the full affect of the attack was felt it still packed a punch as it sent the former Konoha now Oto shinobi a couple feet away and slammed him hard into a boulder. It wasn't until it was all done that Naruto recognized the pain that was going through his arm.

"_Damn it. Doing the Rasengan put too much strain on my arm. It still hasn't fully recovered to deal with the tension that kind of jutsu puts it through. Don't think I could do another one."_ Luckily the pain started to ease away. _"At least I was able to take that son of a bitch down."_ That thought went out the window because of what Naruto saw. "Oh, you got to be kidding me."

Getting back to his feet was Kabuto and he looked a little ragged from the results from the Rasengan. Especially since in the place that his attack hit a large part of his shirt was gone and that part of his body was charred up and some blood was coming out of his mouth. "My, that was a surprising. Didn't expect someone like you would be able to do such a maneuver. But seeing who you really are I shouldn't be all that surprised. After all, you're the nine-tailed fox in human form." Kabuto's words didn't sit well with Naruto but they would be put on hold as he saw that the wound he gave started to heal.

"How unfortunate of you that you're not the only one here that can heal themselves quickly. This is quite a shame. I thought that you would've been more of a challenge. Apparently I overestimated your ability." Again what Kabuto was saying was getting to the spiky haired blond. "But it would seem like there's nothing remarkable about you with the exception of what's sealed inside of you. Even now, in the presence of all three sannin you're nothing more than a speck in all of this. So, do the same thing and leave before you regret it."

All of those words were making Naruto reaching his breaking point. He was prepared to show his frustration but was stopped when an unexpected voice of reason spoke up. _**"Calm down you fool."**_ snapped Kyuubi. _**"He's trying to provoke you so you won't think clearly. If you go against him right now he'll take you out in no time and I for one don't plan to die because you being a hothead."**_ Luckily the demon fox's words appeared to have got through to Naruto as he calm down. _**"It's like what he did the last time you went against him. He said things so it would get to you. Just block it out."**_

"_Wait a minute. I like to talk too."_ Coming up with a strategy Naruto smiled at the grey haired boy. "So in a way you're saying that I should be like you? Willing to betray my home and become the lackey to a person who has some sick fetish for snakes?" Just as he wanted Kabuto started to become irritated by what was being said. "You don't like lackey? How about uh, toady?" That just made the medical specialist angrier as he started narrowing his eyes at him.

"Oh come on, toady is a good one. Wait, I got it. What about flunky? That's perfect. You're just a manipulative, pathetic flunky!" That was the final straw as Kabuto went after him. His first attempted strike was done in blind anger which allowed Naruto to easily avoid. "That was pathetic. Surely you Yori taught you better than that. You remember him, right? He was the brother who you cowardly killed and framed. All so you could be in the good graces of Orochimaru. Just wonder, how did that snake loving freak do to get you to join him? Promised you power? Said the right words or did he use that long tongue of his in another way?"

The boy's gloating got the better of him as he failed to avoid the strike at him, this time a chakra enforced chop to the throat with enough force that it knocked him to the ground. Before he even had a chance to get back up Kabuto was on top of him and started to repeatedly punch him. "Why don't you have to say now Naruto? Where are those clever words of yours? You think you're so funny, don't you?" With each question Kabuto delivered another punch. "Who are you trying to fool? You're nothing more than the demon fox in human form."

Kabuto continue punching, showing no sign of stopping. _"I would do more but I'm nearly drained for recovering from that last attack."_ This went on until Naruto caught one of the oncoming punches. "You think that I'm the nine-tailed fox in human form? Trust me. If that was the case you would've been ripped to shreds a long time ago. Me on the other hand, I think I want you to pay for what you've done."

Naruto's words were followed by both regular and wind chakra encircling his right arm. Not liking the looks of it, Kabuto tried to get some distance but couldn't as the blond had a firm grip on him with his other hand. "Watch closely grandma. I'm about to win our bet." Those words being said he thrust his chakra encased arm at his adversary. "Wind Edge."

The result being Kabuto getting knocked back and a fist size wound in his gut. All those there were surprised as they couldn't believe what they just saw. That would son be forgotten as Naruto started gasping for air as he fell to the ground. Seeing that had seemingly got Tsunade to get over the state of shock that she had been. She hurried over to the fallen boy and started to do a diagnosis had a hand on his throat as he continue to gasp.

"Looks as though my attack has finally started to take affect." exclaimed Kabuto who managed to get to his knees. He didn't appear to be going anywhere anytime soon as he was clutching his gut wound. "I caused a tear in his trachea. Apparently while fighting it completely severed. By my estimate Naruto's got only another minute before he dies from suffocation." A smug smirk came over Kabuto's face for his accomplishment. "Even with the healing ability from the nine-tailed fox won't be able to fix the damage before it's too late. There's no stopping it."

"Shut up." demanded Tsuande without turning away from patient lay before her. "I'll kill you later." Returning her attention back to what needed to be done she went to work on trying to save Naruto who's face was already a deep red. She was focus on that she didn't notice Sakura stumble over.

The younger girl said nothing as she knew that she was too weak to actually help and that her sensei wouldn't appreciate her getting involved. Seeing the condition of her teammate and friend was unsettling to Sakura as she couldn't recall a time when she saw Naruto in such a state. _"Oh, please. You can't die Naruto. You just can't."_ Unaware to Sakura but Tsunade was thinking along those same thoughts.

"_Damn it. Don't you dare die, you idiot."_ Doing everything that she knew Tsunade tried to repair the boy's trachea but the damage was serious and repairing it would take time and time wasn't something that Naruto had as he was getting weaker by the moment. _"He doesn't have much time left."_

**00000000**

From within Naruto the part of his subconscious that was reserved for Kyuubi began to be affected by what was going on. Slowly the area began to grow dark. _**"What stupid fool. How could that idiot get himself in such a situation?"**_ While the demon fox was showing it, the increased darkness didn't sit well with him. _**"What a pathetic way for someone such as me to meet his end. How unfortunately, just as this boy was starting to prove interesting."**_

Soon the whole area was nearly covered in darkness when it suddenly stopped. _**"What?"**_ Little by little the light returned to Kyuubi's zone. _**"Itlooks like my life isn't going to end yet. This boy's luck has paid off once again.**_" Despite him, the demon fox let out a chuckle at his good fortune.

**00000000**

The reason for Kyuubi's life being spared was due to the combination of Tsunade's medical jutsu and the healing ability that was inherited to Naruto. This became evident when color began to return to his face and was starting to breathe again. He was barely conscious but he was able to mutter a few words. "Looks like I won the bet."

Overcome by relief how things ended up, Tsunade let out a choked up laugh. Likewise was Sakura who was thankful for her friend being alive. _"You sure did win kid and you earned it."_ It was then that she notice that on her hands were blood. A result from when Naruto coughed up when trying to breathe. Even now realizing this she wasn't reacting like she usually did. _"My homophobia is gone. When did that happen?"_ This unexpected situation was something that the medical sannin was happy about.

**00000000**

"Now what were you going to say about him not being all that interesting?" mocked Jiraiya, who couldn't hide how pleased he was how the fight turned out. "Your boy did pretty well. Unfortunately, he underestimated his opponent."

"But he didn't come out of it unharmed." countered Orochimaru. "Things don't look so good for him." He did a good job in keeping his emotions in check.

"There's no need to worry about him. Tsunade will take good care of him." Soon the back and forth banter that had been going on between them was done as Jiraiya turned his attention straight toward snake sannin. "But you shouldn't worry about Naruto. After all, you still have to attend with me."

"That's not what I meant." Glancing back at the boy, Orochimaru couldn't help but sneer a little. _"Damn that demon brat. Once again he's become a thorn in my plans. Indeed there's more to him than meets the eye. If things continue he'll likely continue to do so and if he were to come across the Akatsuki he'll become even more of a hassle than he already is. Best thing to do would be to kill him here and now."_ Following that conclusion Orochimaru went straight for his target.

"_He's after Naruto."_ Recognizing what could happen, Jiraiya hurried after his former teammate. Putting a stop of an interruption from his part, Orochimaru used his long tongue to wrap around Jiraiya's leg and slam him to the ground. He hit hard enough that the toad sannin would be unable to get up anytime soon.

With that obstacle out of the way the leader of Oto continued his attack on his attended target. As he rushed in he opened his mouth where a small snake came out and when it opened its mouth a long bladed sword poked out. Seeing Orochimaru coming and with Kusanagi Sword out, Tsuade realized what he was trying to do.

What happen next came as a surprise to everyone who saw it as Tsunade placed herself in between him and Naruto who was still unable to do anything at the moment. That move resulted in the Kusanagi Sword stabbing her in the chest and coming out her back. The damage became even more apparent as she coughed up blood.

"Why did you get in my way Tsunade? You were the one person I planned on not killing." By how he spoke it almost sounded like Orochimaru was being honest. "Step aside and let me kill that brat. If he's allowed to live he'll cause a great deal of trouble. Stay out of my way."

"No, I will not." Tsunade managed to mutter out. "I'll protect this boy with all of my being." She helped to show that by not allowing herself to fall when Orochimaru removed Kusanagi from her chest.

"Why would you, one of the sannin risk yourself to protect some genin?" wondered the pale skinned sanin as he made Kusanagi slid back down his throat. "It doesn't make any sense."

"It's to help protect Konoha." stated Tsunade with absolute certainty. "Despite the burden of having a biju sealed inside of him, he's willing to use that same burden to help protect his village. Protect it from the likes of you. He's a symbol of what this generation is capable of being. Perhaps one day he'll be like his father and become the Hokage of the village."

Strangely, Orochimaru laughed when he heard that. "That's a nice little fantasy that you came up. However, the boy meets his end here. Seems kind of fitting that ended the lives of the father and the son." That comment was met by confusion. "You don't know, do you? When I wish to join the Akatsuki I had to give them something useful. So, I told them where they could find the nine-tailed fox." Hearing that was a shock to all those who were in earshot of that announcement. What no one realize that the fallen blond was hearing everything.

"That dreadful organization isn't in favor of me but when telling them who was the jinchuuriki of the demon fox they were decent enough to leave me alone for the time being." Orochimaru's incessant taunting came to an abrupt end when he and everyone else felt a foul presence. The source was identified as standing behind Tsunade was Naruto but he was different.

His eyes were blood red, his blond hair was wilder and the whisker markings on his cheeks had become thicker. He almost beast like as his fingernails grew until they were like claws, his teeth became like fangs and he was crouching down to the point that he was on his hands and knees. Naruto resembled an animal, specially a fox. Especially a red chakra began to surround his body; even down to a tail appeared.

"It's your fault." spoke Naruto but it wasn't in his usual voice. It was beastly and was filled with absolute hatred. "It's your fault they're gone. You're the reason my parents are dead." In a blink of an eye the blond got right in front of the surprised Orochimaru and punched him as hard as he could. The punch caused him to be knocked back around fifty feet away. "Get up. I'm not ready to kill you yet." Whether he realized or not Naruto turned into Fox and when that happened that horrid feeling seemingly got stronger.

Sensing that feeling, Jiraiya started to pull himself out of the hole that he was slammed into. When he saw his godchild he recognized what was happening. _"It's starting to take over."_ He tried to get up but was having trouble doing so. _"I've got to stop this. If I don't then we're all in trouble."_

Jiraiya wasn't the only one who didn't like how things turned out. While she was a reasonable distance away, Sakura couldn't help but be a little afraid. The chakra she was feeling from Naruto was so frightful that you could practically taste the hatred that was behind it. _"This can't be Naruto. There's no way that such a feeling would come from him."_ She couldn't help but wince as she watched her enraged continue to go after Orochimaru, who was keeping his distance. _"Please. Someone stop this."_

**00000000**

"_He's no longer in control."_ Orochimaru would come up with that solution as Naruto was coming at him almost like some kind of an animal. Didn't mean that he wasn't having trouble as he no matter how much distance he tried to make distance between the two of them but the enraged boy would cover it within moments. Also, the power he was feeling was a little unnerving. _"If only I had the use of my arms. This annoyance would be ease to deal with."_

Again Naruto/Fox charged at Orochimaru and when he tried to strike him with his claws he missed. Or maybe not as while the boy's attempted strike didn't hit the red chakra that was with it went another direction and clawed Orochimaru in the stomach. Not enough like threaten but still serious. _"That chakra, it acted separately than the boy. Clearly this has something to do with the demon fox."_

Unfortunately for Orochimaru, his attention was focused on the demon empowered boy that he failed to notice when Tsunade came from the side and hit him in the side of the face with one of her famous punches that caused him to tumble near to where Kabuto was. Glancing over at the boy in question he saw that even with his medical expertise he was in no condition to aid him in the fight.

Realizing that not only did he have to worry about demonic boy but Tsunade and Jiraiya who was starting to get back to his feet, Orochimaru felt that it was time to make a tactful retreat. _"What a shame. I would've liked to go up against one of the bijus."_ "It's time that we take our leave Kabuto." Understanding what his lord, Kabuto forced himself to get to his feet.

"It's a pity that you wouldn't help me, Tsuande. But there is another way to fix my arms." As he spoke, Orochimaru slowly started to submerge himself into the ground. "When I do I promise to destroy Konoha." Before he was completely gone the two sannin saw what seem like the face of a young woman where Tsunade had punched him. Seeing this, both her and Jiraiya understood what that meant.

"I also promise to get my revenge on all those who have gotten in my way today." With that Orochimaru completely disappeared and was followed by Kabuto who left under the cover of smoke. Only after a few minutes later did they feel that the two of them were gone. However, there was still something that needed to be taken cared of.

"Where did he go?" wondered the demon infused Naruto. "He can't leave. I still want him to be killed for what he did."

"Naruto, that's enough." said Tsunade in a calm voice. "You can calm down now. The danger is gone. Get control of yourself." She tried to be reasonable but it would seem like Naruto wasn't listening to what she was saying.

"Step aside Tsuande. There's only one way to stop him now." Coming up from behind Naruto was Jiraiya. Moving quickly he placed a piece of paper with some type of marking on his forehead. Slowly the demon chakra began t o disappear and the blond started to return to his normal self before losing consciousness. "That was close. We didn't have a moment to lose."

"That was a seal that you used, correct?" asked Tsunade. She was having her injuries treated by Shizune even though she said that she could do it.

"Yeah it was." confirmed Jiraiya. "It's meant to repress the demon fox's chakra if it overcomes Naruto. Thankfully it was stopped when it did. Any longer and he would've went on a rampage, attacking whatever cross his path." Looking down he couldn't help but chuckle as the expression on Naruto's face was one that you would see on a child.

"That's all good and all but I think now it's time for us to leave here." advised Tsunade. "We'll go back to town to let Naruto to recover. When he's able to we'll head back to Konoha." When she said that it caused everyone there to smile as they knew what that meant.

**00000000**

"I can't believe it." repeated Naruto once again. "I had to pick such a lousy time to pass out." There was more to it but the boy preferred to have it be unsaid. "Too bad they got away before they got what they deserved."

"Don't worry, they will." reassured Jiraiya. "One day those two will get what's coming to them. Whether it 's from us or someone else." By the expression that Naruto had on his face he would've rather it was by him. "Anyway, that's for another day. We need to get back to Konoha and have our new Hokage sworn in."

"I can't believe that the Fifth Hokage is going to be an old lady." Naruto failed to notice that his remark was getting to Tsunade. Seeing this, Sakura tried to settle things down.

"Now Naruto, don't be so quick to judge. You better than anyone would know that." Thinking back to when her friend had been consumed in Kyuubi's chakra she couldn't help but be amazed. _"I don't envy you Naruto. You carry a great burden that I don't know if anyone else would be able to persevere like you have."_

* * *

So, what do you think? I hope that the action scenes that were done weren't too over the top or lame. Describing action isn't one of my strongest points but I do what I can. Hopefully the bits of comedic humor was a good addition.

Deciding to have it be Orochimaru being the cause for Akatsuki killing Naruto's parents and then learning about him being a jinchuuriki was done to establish a better understanding for the hatred that the blond has for the sannin. Next chapter should be out later the month and help cool things over from the last few chapters. Until then, see ya.


	45. Ceremony

Another update and along with it, another new chapter. Unlike the last few chapters, this one is going to be a little more laidback. That doesn't mean that they'll be things to set up things later on but if you want to find what they are just check out the chapter. Of course, for the disclaimer, I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Chapter 45:  
Ceremony

"Konoha is sure a spectacular sight." marveled Tsunade. On the top of the Hokage building was the legendary medical specialist among a few others. "Hopefully I'm able to keep it from disappearing."

"It's amazing that you were able to convince Tsunade to return to become Hokage, Jiraiya." applauded Homura Mitokado, one of the village elders. "It must've been difficult for you. Considering what happened."

"Not really." replied Jiraiya. "Everything went as well as expected." He acted like all of it was nothing but everyone that had been there knew otherwise.

"We must alert the Fire Lord and get all the perpetrations ready for the induction ceremony." announced the other village elder, Koharu Utatane. Ordering a few jonin they left to get the word out and get things prepared for the ceremony to induct the new Hokage. "Now Tsunade, there are some things that you must take care of."

"I'll say." added Naruto. He was allowed to be there due to the two sannin that were present. "Treating Sasuke and Kakashi is on top of that list."

The village elders didn't appreciate the genin's involvement in the situation but kept their thoughts to themselves. Tsunade on the other hand chuckled quietly. "I suppose I could take a look at them." Although she didn't try to show it, she was just playing around.

"Fine. I'll head to the hospital and tell Sakura that you're on your way. That should help make her day." With that said, Naruto headed out. Had he looked back he would've seen the smiles from the two sannins.

"You think he suspects anything?" Tsunade inquired. As she spoke up you could detect a faint amusement in her voice.

"Doubt it." presumed Jiraiya. "With everything that he's gone through lately it's unlikely that he's even thought about it." Thinking about it made him laugh. "When he finds out he'll be caught completely by surprise." Soon the humor went away and was replaced by complete seriousness. "Keep an eye on Naruto. Someone has to make sure that he doesn't do anything stupid while I try to gather information on Orochimaru and the Akatsuki."

"Don't worry, I will. However, knowing him, it's easier said than done." Tsunade laughed as there was truth to what was said. Like her former teammate, she became serious. "Take care of yourself. Try not to do anything that'll put you in serious danger."

Slowly a small perverted grin came across Jiraiya's face. "My, if I didn't know any better I would presume that you were concern about me." An irritated stare was Tsunade's response. "Come on, this is me we're talking about. I'm more than capable to take care of myself and if need be, I'll get away if things get too heated. After all, I still have much research to do."

Tsunade merely sighed while shaking her head. "Why do I even bother?" She left for the hospital but muttered about having some sake afterward.

**00000000**

Following her word, Tsuande went to treat the wounded. First up was Kakashi Hatake. "How pathetic. You're supposed to be one of the best shinobi in the village and you allowed yourself to end up like this." Though healed, Kakashi was too exhausted to even say anything as he just sighed.

"Can we go granny?" asked Naruto he was leaning against the doorway. The whole time he kept looking toward the hallway, hardly glancing over to the person who was his sensei. "You've taken care of him but there are others. Don't want to keep them waiting, do you?"

"I haven't forgotten. Why don't you go on ahead and tell Sakura that I'll be there in a minute?" That seemed fine with Naruto as he left without looking back. "Looks like he's still upset about what you've done. Not that I can blame him. If it had been me I'd make sure that you walked with a permanent limp."

"You mind tell me why two S-class shinobi criminals suddenly appeared and were after a id whose been a shinobi for less than a year?" questioned Kakashi after regaining some of his strength. "Doesn't that seem a bit odd to you?"

"Yes but who knows why they were after Naruto?" That was a lie but there was no need for Tsunade to tell the real story. "Instead of wondering the reason you should be glad that they didn't get their hands on him. However, you can't get over your curiosity of wanting to know whatever secret that you student may or may not have." The copycat shinobi said nothing as what had been said was close to the truth.

"That's why I've agreed to Jiraiya's request of making Naruto his apprentice." Kakashi looked at her in one eyed shock. "It won't be official until Jiraiya returns from gathering information. In the meantime I suggest you try to mend the relationship between you two before it's too late." That being said, Tsunade took her leave, leaving the jonin alone to think things over.

**00000000**

"About time you showed up, granny." Naruto muttered. As he was asked he went to find Sakura. It didn't take long for him to find her as she was at the bedside of the unconscious Sasuke. When hearing that Sakura was happy but that slowly turned to annoyance as the woman they waited for didn't show up until now. "For a while I thought that you forgot because of old age."

"Quit complaining you brat. Unlike you I got important things to take care of." There wasn't any actual hostility with their back and forth banter. It was more like harmless joking around. "Sorry for the wait. Let's get to why we're here." Going over to the boy's bed, Tsunade placed a green chakra covered hand over Sasuke's head. After a few moments they saw a reaction as the Uchiha slowly started to wake up.

Once he woke up he pushed himself to a sitting position. Before Sasuke could get a word out he was almost tackled by an emotionally happy Sakura as she came over and wrapped her arms around him. "Sakura, you're holding me too tightly." Sasuke was so tired from what happen to him that he couldn't free himself of the grasp of the pink haired girl.

"I'm just so glad that you're okay." Sakura was so glad that she didn't even try to hold back the tears of joy that flowed down her face.

From a few feet away, Naruto watched quietly as the scene took place. He tried to leave without incident. That wouldn't be the case however. "Wait a minute Naruto." stopped Tsunade. "I need you to come with me. There's something that you need to hear that you might like." Naruto simply looked at the soon to be Hokage in curiosity.

**00000000**

"Man, this is a laugh." an amused Ino joked. "Who would've thought that you of all people would become a chunin?" Sitting across the table was the person that Ino was referring to who wasn't all that amused by her mocking.

"Yeah, it's real amusing. Getting promoted is just troublesome." expressed the new chunin of Konoha, Shikamaru Nara. "Being a genin already gave me more work than I wanted. This'll just add to the workload."

"Quit complaining. It's not all that bad." argued Naruto who was also there. "Becoming a chunin isn't all that bad. You don't hear me complaining, do you? Besides, this is a time for celebrating, not to bitch." That put a stop to whatever remark that Shikamaru may have wanted to say.

Like Naruto said, they were at a restaurant to celebrate the promotions of Shikamaru and Naruto. The others who were there were not just Ino but also friends, Choji and Hinata. When the three of them found out about their friends' change in rank they were surprised but happy for their achievement.

"By the way, didn't you guys say that three of you became chunin? Why sin't the third person not here?" wondered Choji.

"He was invited to join us." stated Shikamaru informed as Naruto was busy stuffing his face. "But he politely declined the offer."

"Besides, we all know that Shino isn't one to be the center of attention." added Naruto as he took a breather from eating. "Also, I think that he preferred to celebrate with his family. That should be a lively celebration." A small chuckle went over the group as it was well known that the Aburame family was known to be stoic and hardly showed emotion. "However, we're not technically chunin yet. It won't be official until granny Tsunade becomes Hokage."

"That reminds me. There's supposed to be a big festival after the Hokage is sworn in." recalled Ino. The looks from the others showed that she needed to elaborate. "This could give us the opportunity to possibly hookup with someone." That got a variety of reactions as Shikamaru groaned; Choji nearly choked on his food, Hinata blushed at the mere thought of it while Naruto seem to actually consider the idea.

"Maybe if you thought less about 'hooking up' and more on training you may have been able to get pass the preliminaries." Shikamaru's so called advice didn't sit well with Ino and if it wasn't for the fact that they were on opposite sides of the table she would've swung at him.

Unfortunately she did manage to get a measure of payback as Ino kicked him hard in the leg. Seeing the shadow user crouching over and grabbing his leg was an amusing moment as all of them couldn't help but laugh. "That'll teach you to watch what you say."

**00000000**

The little get together went for a while longer before they went ahead and called it a day. All of them went their separate ways. Everyone that is except for Naruto and Hinata since their ways home was in the same direction. Neither of them said anything as they walked in comfortable silence. Somewhat surprisingly, it was Hinata who got the conversation started.

"I'm…I'm glad that you were able to become chu-chunin, Naruto." she managed to get out. "You really deserve it." Once she said that Hinata immediately looked toward the ground to avoid glancing over to the boy.

"Thanks Hinata. Though I've heard it from a bunch of people already, hearing it from you is something I really appreciate." Naruto didn't notice but what he said only made the Hyuga girl more embarrass. The blush on her face was so bad that it was a possibility that she would pass out from the rush of blood to her head. "Do you think that I should tell Neji about this? I wouldn't mind seeing how your cousin will react when he finds out that I became a chunin before him."

"You shouldn't do that." advised Hinata, forgetting about the embarrassment that she was feeling. "It wouldn't be right. Also, it could make things worse between you and my family." That helped remind Naruto of the tension between him and nearly all of the Hyugas.

Recognizing what Hinata was trying to do, Naruto gave in. "All right, you win. I won't say anything until it becomes official. You've got my word." Suddenly a sneaky smile came over his face. "But I think that I need a little incentive to keep quiet. Hinata, how about you go out with me?"

When that question was asked, it nearly made the blue haired girl to fall over. _"D-Did he just say what I think he just s-say?"_ It was so hard for Hinata to believe what she heard that she started to think that it was just her imagination.

"To the festival I mean." Naruto clarified. "I feel somewhat obligated to be there and I would prefer to have some company. There's no one I would rather accompany me than you. So, do you want to go together?" No reply came and when he looked to the side he saw that Hinata was a few feet back, head tilted downward and standing as still as a statue. "Uh, if you don't want to that's all right."

"No, that's not it!" Hinata suddenly said with some force. "I was just caught off guard by your question." Whether Naruto noticed the blush on her face or not was unknown. "About you're question. …I would like to go with you to the festival." After deciding where they were going to meet, they went their separate ways to their respective homes.

"_**Ha, ha, what a clever move you came up with, kid."**_ complimented Kyuubi. You could already tell that he had something mischievous planned.

"_What are you talking about, you fox?"_ Naruto had a feeling that he wasn't going to like what the demon fox spirit was going to say but he was curious.

"_**I'm talking about you asking out that Hyuga out on a date."**_ Coming to a stop the demon host kept himself from falling over. _**"Are you perhaps hoping that you'd get another chance of seeing what she has underneath that jacket of hers? Honestly, I'm interested in seeing that myself."**_

"_Shut your damn mouth, you bastard. Don't you even think about Hinata that way or you'll regret it."_ An idle threat if anything but thankfully it was enough to keep Kyuubi from saying anymore. _"Just like me make it clear. It's not a date. It's just a get together between friends."_ While it wasn't said, Naruto knew that the nine-tailed fox wanted to dispute the claim.

**00000000**

"Is that all of it?" inquired Tsunade. It was the day before she was to be sworn in and she was bored out of her mind. Almost as soon as she returned to Konoha, the elders had been drilling in all that was needed to be Hokage. She was trying to hide her boredom but it was getting to the point that she didn't try to hold in the yawns that were coming out. _"Man, what I wouldn't do for some sake right now. Even helping Shizune get the hospital updated would be more interesting than this."_

How the she was acting didn't go unnoticed by the two elders and had no problem saying what they felt about it. "Take this serious Tsunade." spoke Honura in slight annoyance. "Tomorrow you're about to receive a position that only a few of the elite from our village have achieved." The sannin merely nodded her head halfheartedly. "But there is something else that needs to be discussed."

Koharu followed her fellow elder's lead by pulling out the folder that she had tucked under her arm and gave it to the soon to be Hokage. Opening the folder Tsunade saw that it contained information about a certain individual. "What's this about? Why do you have a profile on Fox?" She acted like she was only had a minor interested but wanted to know what the reason could be.

"It's a standard processor when dealing with an unknown variable." explained Koharu as if giving the simplest answer.

"Is it really necessary?" Tsunade questioned. "From what I was told he hasn't done anything wrong. He helped capturing a couple of criminals, even helped protecting the Third Hokage and played a role during the invasion." There was more that could've been added to the list but it would probably lead to some unwanted suspicion. "If anything, it seems like he decided to Konoha's self appointed protector."

"What gives him the right?" asked Homura with a slight edge in his voice. "We've got more than enough shinobi who are able to protect this village. There's no need for someone that we don't really know anything about to get involved.

"Is that the only reason." inquired Tsunade calmly. "Or could another reason why you're not in favor of him is because he doesn't answer to you?" A slight narrowing of Homura's eyes was all the confirmation that was needed.

"Don't be mistaken Tsunade." Koharu tried to reassure. "It's true that Fox has proven useful at times. However, there's nothing that helps explain who he really is. For all we know he could only be buying his time so he can attack the village." Tsunade wanted to dispute that accusation but couldn't without risking the chances of the connection between her and Fox's true self, Naruto. "If he truly wants to help protect Konoha then he should register himself as one of our shinobi. Danzo has even shown interest of him joining his ranks."

"Yeah, I bet he would." The reputation of that particular ANBU group was well known and the views that were taught to them by their leader, Danzo. "Until there's any evidence that proves otherwise, Fox will be left alone." deemed Tsunade with some authority in her voice. "Occasional surveillance is suggested but that is all." Both Koharu and Homura weren't happy with the decision but kept their opinion to themselves.

With the subject closed for the time being, Tsunade looked down at a picture of Fox that was in the folder. _"This'll definitely lead to problems later on. I wonder if you'll be able to handle them when they come."_

**00000000**

"_Only a little bit longer. Don't stop now."_ Determined even more, Sakura focused her chakra on healing the cut on the animal before her. This was proving to be more difficult than when it came to dealing with the ones previously. Reason being that it was longer and a jagged cut than the usual small and simple cut.

Sakura managed to close up over half of it when she started to feel herself lose control. She thought about stopping when she recalled what happen when she fought Kabuto and what he said during it. _"I'm not pathetic. I'll become stronger so that I won't be a burden to anyone anymore." _

With Sakura's resolve reconfirm went back at the task at hand. To her credit she was able to completely heal the cut but right after finish she braced herself against the counter as she was drained of chakra. Despite that it couldn't get rid of the satisfied smile on the medical shinobi in training.

"That was very impressive Sakura." stated someone that the girl in question knew. Looking over to the doorway was her jonin sensei, Kakashi. "You've really improved as a medical specialist."

"Thanks, sensei. It's really due to Lady Tsunade being such a strict teacher." Rested up enough that she could get around without trouble, Sakura started to clean up. "Should you be moving around Kakashi? You can't possibly have recovered already."

"It can't be helped. I've been assigned a mission already I need to go after the Hokage coronation." By how he looked, Kakashi appeared to be exhausted but was trying to hide it. "Sakura, you went on the mission to find the Fifth correct?" The girl nodded her head in confirmation. "Did anything strange happen?"

Looking over her shoulder, Sakura gave the jonin a confuse stare. "Why do you ask? Everything that happened during the mission should be in the report that was given. That should help answer your questions."

Apparently there was more that Kakashi wanted to ask but wasn't sure how he should raze it. "I don't think it would. All I wish to know is whether your teammate, my student, Naruto did anything…unusual?" He said it as casual as he could but stared intently at his other student. "If there's anything that you want to tell me, find me. I'm willing to listen."

"It seems like he didn't listen to Tsunade's suggestion." At the doorway was Shizune. "Don't worry, he's gone. Now you know why Naruto has been hostile with Kakashi lately and you should know what kind of 'talk' he would like to have with you."

"He's hoping that I tell him about Naruto's secret." concluded Sakura as she already knew the reason. "Naruto gave me a brief explanation of what was going on. Why does Kakashi want to know his secret so badly?"

"Who can say? Maybe Kakashi thinks he should know because Naruto's father was hi sensei and he's now the sensei for his son." surmised Shizune. "He's also seems determined to know what Naruto could be hiding that it's clouding his judgment." Not liking how the mood had changed she tried to change the subject. "Forget about that. Why don't you head out? See your friends, go home or go see how Sasuke is doing. Remember, tomorrow is a big day."

Saying thanks to Shizune, Sakura took her leave. She thought about visiting Sasuke in his hospital room but decided not to. Ever since coming out of his coma the Uchiha had become more distant and cold hearted than he had been before. She wanted to ask what was wrong but every time she was about to ask, Sasuke's gave her a cold stare which left the question unsaid.

Deciding to avoid a possible uncomfortable meeting, Sakura headed homes. All she wanted now was to have something to eat, get cleaned up and go to bed. _"Tomorrow's the day that my sensei's becomes the Fifth Hokage. I should make sure to present myself decently when that happens. I don't want to be on the receiving end of Lady Tsunade's temper."_

**00000000**

Next Day…

The ceremony went on without a bitch as one of the three sannin, Tsunade was sworn in as the Fifth Hokage of Konoha. Practically everyone that was connected with the village was in attendance. From lords to dignitaries were there, mostly to make sure that they would be in the good graces with the new Hokage.

Now the festival was going on and the people there were those who actually lived in Konoha and that included Naruto Uzumaki. The boy in question was standing by one of the booths seemingly waiting for something. He was becoming a bit impatient but was keeping a lid on it. _"What could be taking so long?"_

"Sorry about being late, Naruto." apologized the person who he had been waiting for. Coming over they took a moment to catch their breath. "I hope you weren't waiting too long."

"Don't worry Hinata. I didn't mind." Naruto lied. "You're here now and that's what matters. By the way, like the outfit. It really suits you." What he was talking about was that she was dressed in a light blue kimono that showed some of the maturity that her body had gone through.

Like expected, a blush came over Hinata's face. "Th-Thanks you. Y-You don't look b-bad yourself." Naruto's outfit for the event was a black kimono, baggy light orange pants and a matching sash that was tried to his waist.

The newly promoted chunin was about to suggest that they should get going when he noticed that standing a few feet behind Hinata was her sister, Hanabi who was wearing the traditional white robes that the Hyuga family wore at formal events. Knowing what Naruto was seeing, the older sister gave an explanation. "My father wouldn't let me go until I told him where I was going. When he found out he…suggested that I bring Hanabi along." Hinata explained but her brief hesitation didn't go unnoticed. "He thought that it would be a good way for us to get closer."

"Or your father thought that it wouldn't leave you alone with the likes of me." spoke Naruto with certainty. Hinata unable to make eye contact was all the confirming that he needed. "That's fine. It's not everyday that a guy can go around with not one but two lovely ladies at his side."

Not surprising, a blush came over Hinata's face but what was bit of a shock was that the face of Hanabi had become slightly flush. "We've wasted enough time standing around here. How about we get moving and have some fun?" Getting no argument from either Hyuga sister, the three of them headed out to enjoy themselves.

Like she said, Ino was there to have fun but also seeing if there was anyone worth hooking up with. Doing something similar, Kiba was trying to get with some girls only coming out empty-handed. Both Shikamaru and Choji were seen at an area to eat and that was what the Akimichi was doing while the Nara boy was leaning on the table while looking at the starry sky. Sakura was even spotted and when she was told what was going on, she couldn't help but to tease that would case both Naruto and Hinata to blush.

It was pretty late when they decided to call it a night. While Naruto and Hinata walked down the quiet streets Hanabi had become so exhausted that she could hardly keep her eyes open. It got to the point that she was being carried piggyback style by the blond and actually fell asleep leaning against him.

"You sure you're okay with carrying her?" asked Hinata in a quiet voice so it wouldn't wake her sister up. "I could carry her for the rest of the way."

"Don't worry, I don't mind." shrugged Naruto in an equally quiet tone. "It's no trouble at all. Besides, we're almost there." True to his word, the three of them arrived at the large Hyuga house and was greeted by a branch member at the front entrance.

He exchanged polite pleasantries with Hinata but his attitude completely changed when he turned to Naruto. Without so much as a word he took the still sleeping Hanabi and headed for the house, leaving the two of them behind. Neither of them said anything as they didn't know what to say and it wasn't until Hinata spoke up did things pick up.

"Thanks for tonight, Naruto. I really enjoyed myself." She was blushing but was keeping herself from looking away.

"So did I. More than I ever expected I would." Naruto was speaking the absolute truth. _"This night should end on a good note."_ Without warning, he leaned over and gave Hinata a quick peck on the lips.

Surprise came over the two of them as neither knew where that came from. "Uh…I think I should go. I'll talk to you later Hinata." Not even waiting for a response, Naruto left. Even if he decided to wait he still wouldn't get a reply as Hinata was too surprise at what just happen to say or do anything.

**00000000**

"I'm such an idiot." Naruto berated himself. He had been doing that ever since running off after what he did with Hinata. "Why would I do such a thing? I wasn't thinking."

"_**Or maybe you were."**_ spoke Kyuubi. You could tell that the demon fox found the situation amusing. _**"Perhaps instead of thinking with the head on your shoulders, you were getting your signals elsewhere."**_ Didn't take much to know what he was referring to.

It was the first time that the fox had said anything in quite sometime and his decision to do so now didn't sit well with his human host. _"Shut the fuck you, you fur ball. I'm not in the mood and your unwanted commentary isn't something that I want to deal with at the moment. Now be quiet or so help me I'll get Jiraiya to alter the seal so that you won't be able to do a damn thing inside your cell. Are we clear?"_

Nothing was said by Kyuubi and it seemed like he might actually do as Naruto said. Unfortunately that wasn't the case. _**"Okay. I won't say anything about it anymore. However, can you honestly say that you're completely regretting kissing that Hinata girl?"**_ For his part, Naruto said nothing as he wasn't sure himself.

* * *

I bet that you readers are thinking that it's about time that I finally moving things along between Naruto and Hinata. This chapter seem like a good moment to start progress things but there'll be a few more chapters until anything is solidified completely.

You may also think me deciding to have Naruto become a chunin was a cheap way of getting him remaining a genin but I got my reasons. His match with Neji was done where he just didn't use power to come out on top but used a good amount of strategy mixed in.

Also continued the storyline of the village elders not being so keen of Fox getting involved in Konoha's buisness without having any control over his actions. It'll continue to be touched upon here and there but won't be have any real impact on the story for a while still.

Hope to have the next chapter shortly before the end of the month or early the next one. Depends really on how things go. Until then, see ya.


	46. Suspect

Here's another chapter to my story. I'm glad to see that the previous chapter was seemingly well recieved. Hopefully the rest of the chapters will get similar reactions. As for the disclaimer, I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Chapter 46:  
Suspect

"There it is. Don't let it get away." In a forest at an unknown location, a mob of people were after something and by the hostility that they were showing, they weren't planning to do anything nice. "Do whatever you have to do but make sure it doesn't escape."

Spreading out the mob tried to find what they were searching for. Try as they might they weren't find their target. Unbeknownst to them was that the thing that they were trying to find was able to get pass them and get to safety. For the time being that is.

**00000000**

"Finding a creature?" At Konoha, Naruto was at the Hokage Tower talking with the Fifth Hokage about something. "Come on, you're joking, right?"

"No I'm not." stated Tsunade honestly. "A small town near the border between Konoha and Suna has reported that there's been some sort of creature causing problems and want it to be taken cared of. Since it's within our territory we're to take care of it instead of Suna."

"Yeah, I get that. But why do the three of us have to deal with this?" The three that Naruto was referring to were himself, Choji and Hinata. "Shouldn't this be handled by one of the hunting units?"

"Normally that would be the case. However, with the lack of information that was given in the reports a team needs to be sent to further investigate what's exactly going on." Tsunade informed. "That's why you're here. Your mission is to go to the town and gather information to see if there is any truth behind the stories of this so called creature." Tsunade paused for a moment but slowly started to smile before continuing. "For this mission the team leader will be…Naruto."

Shock and confusion was evident by the announcement. No more so then the aforementioned boy. "Me? I'm team leader?" Even saying it didn't help him completely comprehend what had been said. "May I ask why?"

"You're a chunin aren't you? Along with the rank there's more responsibility. Leading teams during missions is one of them. Besides…everyone else is either already on missions of their own or not able to go." The somewhat joke helped ease things if only a little. "You three are to be leaving in the next two hours. Duration of the mission is a week. At which time you return and tell whether there's any truth to the reports. Now get going."

**00000000**

"All right, I think this would be a good enough time to call it a day." Getting no argument the three man team settled in a small clearing in the forest that they had been traveling through. "Okay, you already know the drill. Choji and I will get camp set up and Hinata…uh; you can gather the firewood for the night. Sooner we get the jobs done the sooner we can rest up." Going ahead the three of them did their assigned tasks. As they got to work, Choji gave his friend a look. "You don't have to say it. I already know."

While Naruto was both excited and nervous about his first mission as team leader, there was something else that was bothering him. It had been only a few days since the night that he unexpectedly kissed Hinata. Even if it was quick one it didn't make the situation any less easy.

Since then there's been an uneasy feeling between the two of them. They still were able to talk with one another in a reasonable manner but whenever the kiss was about to be brought up, one of them would change the subject. No one beside them knew about the incident but how they were acting didn't go unnoticed. Despite the repeated questioning by everyone they didn't say anything.

Even now, Choji was wondering what was going on but got nothing. He simply asked to not let whatever issues that the two of them were having affect the mission and that he didn't want to be the mediator for them.

Both Naruto and Hinata promised that wouldn't be a problem but that was easier said than done. They could hardly look at one another without the other turning away. Talking was even worse as they didn't say anything unless it was necessary. Though it wasn't said all three knew that if something wasn't done soon, it would make things more difficult later on.

**00000000**

It was pretty late and the three of them had decided to go to sleep. Sometime during the night, Naruto woke up and went to relieve himself. When finished he was going to go back to sleep when he heard what sounded like a big splash of water. Being curious, he went to see what was going on. Following the sound, Naruto arrived at the small lake that wasn't that far from the camp. Peering from behind a tree he saw what the cause for the noise he heard.

Standing on the water a few feet from the shore was Hinata. From where he was hiding Naruto couldn't figure out what she was doing. It wasn't until she did some hand signs and a column of water shot up did things being to come together. This went on for a while longer until Hinata seemingly called it quits and made her way back to shore.

"Interesting way of training." Naruto acknowledged while stepping out from his hiding spot. "Using chakra to stay on top of the water while at the same time practicing water jutsus says a lot. That takes a lot of power and control to do such a thing."

Hinata gave no immediate reply as the unexpected arrival of the blond. "I…I just want to make sure that I won't be a burden to anyone." she managed to muttered out as she got her jacket that she took off to keep it from getting soaked. It took all her willpower to say that without stuttering.

"Like you're ever been considered a burden." expressed Naruto. "You're better than you think Hinata." Soon the uneasy feeling that the two of them had been experiencing showed itself. "Hinata, we need to talk about what happen that night. I mean, I…kissed you." No response from the girl in question as the topic of the discussion was making her unable to say anything.

"But now isn't the time. Maybe after the mission we can talk about it. Does that sound okay with you?" All he got was a nod of agreement. "Okay. We should probably go back to camp and get some sleep." He started to leave but stopped when something came to him. "Oh, there's one more thing I have to say. Maybe you should think about not wearing your jacket Hinata. You look better without it." That said, Naruto left, never noticing that the Hyuga girl remained where she stood and a very deep blush on her face.

**00000000**

It wasn't long for the three of them to reach the town. Soon as they arrived they went to meet the person who sent all the reports. The person's name was Makato Muyo. He was in his mid forties, brown hair that was starting to turn gray and was using a cane to help get around. When told who they were and why they were there, he invited them inside to talk.

"Thank you for the hospitality, Mr. Myuo but perhaps we should discuss why you're in need of us." Naruto politely suggested. "In the reports you said something about a creature. Care to elaborate what you meant?"

"Why of course. Before that, there are things you should know first. This is a small town where most of its money comes from the people who travel to and from Fire and Wind Country. We make enough to get by but a new development has occurred. We've discovered that underneath the town is a large deposit of an ore that could be used to substitute common steel and iron to make tools that shinobi and other people can use."

"Well, that's good and all." spoke Choji calmly. "But how does all that have to do with why we were needed?"

Makato Muyo gave the Akimichi boy a small smile for his question. "After discovering the ore it was planned to begin mining for it." Slowly the expression on the old man's face became grim. "But before we could even start, that creature showed up. From the distance it appears human but upon closer examination you'll realize that isn't the case. It's a monster trying to masquerade in human form and has caused things to be halted."

Makoto's expression would change and became more optimistic. "That's why you're here. I want you to take care of whatever this creature is. By any means necessary. Do we have an understanding?" All Makoto got were three heads nodding.

**00000000**

After the conversation, the three of them started their mission. Believing that getting more information would be a good idea, it was decided that splitting up and asking around could prove useful. What the other two didn't know was that there was another reason why their blond teammate supported that idea.

"_Let's see now. Description: young, small athletic body, red slit eyes and long red hair that reaches mid back. Other information: incredibly fast and seemingly stronger senses."_ Already Naruto have some assumptions. _"Could it be possible? What do you think Kyuubi?"_

"_**Don't ask me. I don't have a clue."**_ was the quick and simple answer. That caught Naruto by surprise as it was unusual for Kyuubi to say so little when answering a question. Almost would seem like he was distracted by something.

Before he could think about it anymore, something caught Naruto's attention. At the front of one of the shops, four men had surrounded someone. Getting closer he saw that the person trapped between the men was a girl who seemed slightly younger than him, petit with brown eyes and long black hair that was in a ponytail that had a few bands throughout it to keep it together with a dark purple bandana covering the top of her head. She was wearing a pale pink shirt and loose fitting dark green pants. In her hands was a bag of groceries.

"Please, let me through." pleaded the girl. "I don't want any trouble." She tried to get pass the men but they wouldn't all it. "Why are you doing this? I didn't do anything to you."

"That's where you're wrong." corrected one of the men. "You and that old lady have been a thorn to our boss' plans and he's getting tired of it." Another member of that group followed what was said by shoving the girl down; making her spill what had been in her bags

No longer able to stand back and watch, Naruto decided to get involved. Before doing so he put up a simple plan together to make the situation easier to handle. Having everything prepared he put things into motion. "Uh, excuse me gentlemen. I think you've done enough."

His speaking up got the attention of all four men. Each of them looked at him with absolute content. "Get out of here kid. This doesn't concern you.

"You're right, it doesn't. But I'm not going to standby while four grown men mess with a young girl. Is this how you get your rocks off or are you really that pathetic?" His taunting did the job as all four left the girl and turn their complete attention on him.

"You're really asking for it kid. You should've left when you had the chance." Naruto merely smiled and acted as though he was scared. All that did was anger the men even more. They were about to attack him but stopped when they all felt something sharp poking them in the back. Standing behind them were four shadow clones holding kunais.

"I suggest that you leave now. Unless of course you want to see what it feels like to be literally stabbed in the back." Obviously none of the men wanted to risk that as they took quickly took their leave. Only then did Naruto release his clones and looked over to the girl who was trying to gather what had been spilled. "Are you okay?"

"Y-Y-Yeah." the girl managed to get out. She seemed a little cautious of him but not enough for her to run off. "Thank you for helping me. I appreciate it. My name's Kagome Yamada by the way."

"Naruto Uzumaki is my name; saving damsels in distress is my game." His joke did the trick as it put Kagome more at ease as she actually laughed. "Mind if I help you take these things to wherever it is you're going?" Due to being occupied by picking up what was left of the spilled items, Naruto didn't notice a light blush coming over Kagome's face.

"I would l-like that." Having gathered everything they headed out. As they walked, Naruto happen to notice that there were people who saw what had gone on but had done nothing to stop it. That would be a thought for later as he continued to walk with his companion which was proving to be entertaining.

They continue to walk as they left town and didn't stop until they were about a mile away as there was a simple looking home with what appeared to be crops of things being grown. When they got closer, a woman came out of the house. She was old enough that there were patches of gray within her black hair that reached just pass her shoulders.

Despite her apparent age she was seemingly in remarkable good shape. Also with the shovel that she was currently holding made her a little intimidating as she was prepared to use it as a weapon if necessary. "It's about time that you came home, Kagome. I was starting to worry." It was then that the woman took notice of Naruto. Who's he? Don't tell me that you started picking up strays."

"No Aunt Deirdre." Kagome quickly denied. "Some men were harassing me and he came to my rescue. How he did it was so cool." Unable to help himself, Naruto became a little bashful from the praise.

The woman identified as Deirdre let what was said to be thought over. "Were they the same men as before?" A nod was given by her niece. Getting confirmation she turned to the blond. "Thank you for helping my niece. We're indebted to you. I'm afraid I don't know what your name is."

"The name's Naruto Uzumaki. Also forget about the whole indebted thing. I was doing what I felt was the right thing to do and I happen to be at the right place at the right time. Luckily I was investigating for Muyo when it happened." He suddenly noticed the change in mood from the two women.

"Muyo, you mean Makato Muyo?" How Deirdre asked that made Naruto a bit hesitant before he nodded his head. The expression on the woman's face turned into a sneer. "Thank you again for you help Uzumaki but I think that now would be a good time for you to leave." By the way that she said that it sounded more like a demand than a suggestion.

Taking the hint, Naruto left without incident. _"What was that about? Why would she suddenly get so hostile with me? Could it have something to do when I mentioned Muyo?"_ All those questions would unfortunately be left unanswered as nothing came to him.

**00000000**

"So, did you guys find anything?" Getting back to town, Naruto met back with Hinata and Choji. They were at a café to discuss what they were able to find out. Each of them hoped that one of them found something useful.

"Afraid I didn't find anything about this so called creature." started Hinata. "However, when I asked around, the people said that the whole creature situation was nothing more than a ruse and had no truth behind it." That was strange, given what we were told.

"The same went with me." seconded Choji. "Strangely, when I mentioned the discovery of the ore I was told that the land that is over the ore despite has been bought by someone. They wouldn't say who the person was." It was thought that they reached a dead end but the Akimichi boy continued. "However, I did find out that there's still one piece of land that hasn't been bought. Some woman and her niece apparently own it ." That last part really caught Naruto's attention.

"Their names wouldn't happen to be Deidre and Kagome Yamada, would they?" Choji confirmed his friend's question. When he was given confused stares from his two friends, Naruto explained. "I ran into the niece, Kagome earlier as she was being harassed by some men. Afterward, I accompanied her home and met Deirdre. Long story short, we talked and I was told to leave." Letting a sigh he ran his hand through his hair. "Something is going on here. More than we're being told. We better figure it before it's too late."

Suddenly Naruto felt a feeling of dread but there was something else about it. Best he could figure was that the feeling was coming from someplace else. Before he could think about it any further, Kyuubi spoke up. _**"Get moving, you idiot. That girl is in trouble."**_

For reasons he couldn't understand, Naruto rushed out of the café. "Move it you guys. We got to hurry." Neither Hinata nor Choji could understand why their friend/team leader's sudden action but they went ahead and hurried after him. The three of them wouldn't stop until they arrived at the home of Deirdre and Kagome although they weren't the only ones there. Once again the four men that Naruto dealt with had returned and were trying to apparently finish what they started.

"Choji, Hinata, take care of the two that are out here. I'll handle the ones inside." The three of them went ahead to deal with what they needed to do but one thing continued to bother Naruto. _"How did I know that something was going on here and why do I feel as though Kyuubi knows more than he's telling?"_ There was no time to think about it any further as when he entered the house he saw both men standing in front of both aunt and niece who were up against the wall. "I thought I told you to not do something like this again." Both men turned around and showed a slight apprehension when they recognized who it was. "Apparently I have to go ahead and teach you a lesson."

Just as Naruto was going to go ahead and follow up his words he stopped when one of the men grabbed Deirdre and put a knife to her throat. "Stay where you are. Try anything and this lady will lose some blood, the hard way."

Though he hated to do so, Naruto remained where he was. The thought of using shadow clones to overwhelm them did cross his mind but thought better as there was a chance of the hostage getting hurt. "Good. Now I think it's time to pay you back for the humiliation that you gave us."

Before any retaliation could be done, an uneasy feeling was felt. Even Naruto was surprised by what he was feeling but for a different reason. Right before his eyes he watched as Kagome started to change. Her black hair turned red, brown eyes became red and the bandana on her head flew off and revealed was appeared to be red fox ears. Lastly, a faint cloak of red chakra developed her body. _"This feeling, it's…it can't be."_

This unexpected event did prove beneficial as it distracted the two men which allowed Naruto to throw two shurikens at their legs. The move made them inadvertently let go of Deirdre. With no hostage to hide behind, he was going to go after them but an enraged Kagome beat him to it. Rushing in she gave one of them a punch that sent him into a neighboring wall. As for the other, he was able to stab the girl in the shoulder with a knife but that hardly slowed her down as she smacked him down.

She cleared intended to end the man's life it it wasn't for the intervening of Naruto getting in-between them. "Now would be a good time for you and your friend to get out of here." Not allowing the chance to keep living pass him by, the one conscious man grabbed his friend and got both of them out of there. They leaving weren't the issue though as Kagome was angered and wanted to lash out at something.

"Calm down." Naruto demanded. His words did nothing as the girl seemed to only get more enraged by being denied what she wanted. "Damn it. I said calm down." Whether he realized it or not, he was letting some of Kyuubi's chakra come out, which finally cause Kagome to relax. About this time both Hinata and Choji entered the house, seemingly having taken care of the trouble outside. They arrived in time to see Kagome return to normal.

When done she fell to the ground and started to cry. Rushing over, Deirdre hugged her niece in the hopes of comforting her. For their part, Hinata and Choji looked at Naruto in the hopes of knowing what was going on. He didn't notice this as he was trying to grasp what he discovered. _"How is this possible? There's no way that it's possible."_

* * *

Bet you didn't expect that, didn't you. I'll give an explanation on how that little surprise at the end of the chapter was possible in the next chapter. When that chapter will be out is unknown at the time. Hopefully I'll try to have it out before Thanksgiving but I promise that it'll be uploaded no later than early Decemeber.

Until then, see ya.


	47. Relationship

Hey there readers. I hoped that you all had a happy holiday. With it now passed here is the next chapter to the story. As for the disclaimer, I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Chapter 47:  
Relationship

"Care to explain what that was all about?" Not long after the whole situation, Naruto and his friends were at Deirdre and Kagome's house wanting answers. "Why have those men been going after you two? More to the point, what was that your niece did back there?"

Neither woman said anything. Deirdre didn't look like she was going to say a word and Kagome appeared to be in no state to say anything as she was crouch down at the far corner of the room with her hands covering the now brown fox ears. "Going with the silent treatment I see. Let's go you guys. We should inform the Hokage about the event when we give our report." They started to leave but stopped when the older woman of the two spoke up.

"Wait." called out Deirdre. She looked like she didn't want to say anything but gave in. "All right, you win. I'll tell you everything." Returning to their seats the three shinobi waited for the explanation. "First off, do you three know the history about the demon fox, Kyuubi?" A unanimous nod was given and Naruto was able to contain the slight uneasy feeling that was building in his gut.

"Before it attacked your village it passed through our small town. We suffered considerable damage but it could've been worse if it actually bothered with us. Perhaps we should consider ourselves fortunate." Deirdre laughed but lacked any humor. "As it 'passed through' one of its nine-tails happen to graze against a woman who would be my grandmother. She lived and seemed to be okay. However, she had recently become pregnant and would discover that graze did do something."

"_Do you know what she's talking about, Kyuubi?"_ Getting no reply from the fox didn't sit well with Naruto. _"Keep quiet now but we're going to talk about this later."_ Whether Kyuubi actually heard him could be anyone's guess.

"When my grandmother gave birth to what would be my mother they saw that even as a baby she had a feeling that was similar to the nine-tailed fox. It became more apparent when she got extremely angry. It was determined that when the fox's tail grazed my grandmother some of itself went into her, specifically her unborn child." That sounded a little farfetched but the three shinobi continued to listen.

"This was thought to be a matter of circumstances and would be a onetime thing but that wasn't the case. When my mother had her first child, my older sister, that same presence was in her and then some as while she had normal ears, small fox ears also appeared. Then when Kagome was born she had the same issue with the ears as well as that transformation. That pretty much the whole story."

Having heard Deirdre's entire story there was a variety of reactions from the listeners. Choji was so surprised that he hadn't even taken a bite from the bag of chips that he had, Hinata had a wide eyed expression on her face as it was a lot to take in. As for Naruto, he remained stoic and hadn't said a word. That was on the outside but it was a different story on what was going on in the inside his head as he tried to register everything that was said.

Peering over every so often he saw that Kagome was starting to calm down but was still a little shaken up. "Her family has gone through a similar thing as mine." Seemingly sensing that she was being watched, Kagome glanced over to Naruto and gave a small smile.

"An interesting story but we should focus on current matters. For tonight we'll stay here." Naruto's announcement surprised Deirdre. "In case those bastards return."

**00000000**

"_Who would've thought? There was someone who was basically going through the same thing as me."_ After it was decided that they were going to say guard for the night, the Konoha shinobi went ahead and took shifts. Currently it was Naruto's turn and he was standing guard in front of the house. _"I never thought that such a thing was possible."_

"_**Don't be so quick to judge."**_ regarded a voice in his subconscious. _**"Your guys' situations are not the same. Her family was a fluke."**_ Kyuubi had finally started talking again and it was only after having heated words did things return to how they once were.

"_You would know, wouldn't you?"_ questioned Naruto who was a still a bit irritated by the silent treatment that his demon tenant gave him. _"After all, it was because you attack this town that their family had to deal with it. All so you could cause havoc and destruction."_

"_**I've never denied what I've done. What happened to them was an accident."**_ By the sound of it, Kyuubi was being completely honest. _**"Simply put, that girl's grandmother was at the wrong place at the wrong time."**_

Before the mental conversation could go any further, someone made their presence known. "What brings you out here?" Standing a few feet away from the blond was Deirdre. "Was there something that you wanted?"

"I just wanted to ask you something that's been bothering me?" For some reason Naruto figured that he wasn't going to like whatever question that was going to be asked. "You mind telling me how you were able to calm my niece down when she was out of control?"

"_There's times that I hate being right."_ "What's there to say? Just showed enough determination to get her to stop is all. Or maybe I was simply lucky." The spiky haired demon host hoped that the woman would let the subject drop.

"Then mind telling me why it felt as though you had the same fowl presence as Kagome has when she's upset?" Cursing under his breath, Naruto mumbled something about rotten luck. "You're like her, aren't you? You were affected by the demon fox too.

"Not exactly." corrected Naruto quietly. He realized that there was no point denying it any longer. "I have _the actual_ nine-tailed fox in me." Shock was evident on Deirdre's face. "My grandfather sealed it inside of himself to save Konoha. He also made it so that when the host dies the fox is transferred to their child. I hope that I don't have to ask that you keep what I said a secret."

"Of course not." reassured Deirdre. "I know how important it is to keep such a thing secret." While that helped ease some of the worry that Naruto felt, he knew that there were other things to be concerned about.

**00000000**

Next Day…

"Where's Naruto?" It was morning and everyone were about to have some breakfast but there were some exceptions. "He wasn't in his room when I went to get him." stated Hinata.

"I think he left." Choji commented from the table. "He said that he needed to clear some things with our client." Last night it was decided that they wouldn't say Makoto Myuo's name while in hearing distance of the Yamadas due to the hostile that was there. "Now that you mention it, aren't we missing someone else?"

"You're talking about Kagome." clarified Deirdre as she got the food ready. "I believe that she said something about making sure that Naruto didn't get lost or so she said." Nothing was really said after that but one thing did kind of stick out and that was the depressed looked that came over Hinata's face.

**00000000**

Going to town was relaxing as Naruto walked calmly. He suddenly stopped for some reason. "All right, you can come out now. You've done enough hiding already."

There wasn't any sign of what had been said being true but that was proven to be accurate as stepping out from behind a tree was a somewhat embarrass Kagome. "You knew I was following you, huh?"

"Wasn't hard." expressed Naruto. "You're not that good at sneaking around." That only embarrassed the girl more as she rubbed the back of her head. "Is there a reason why you're following me or do you like to sneak around and spy on people?"

Whether he noticed it or not, Naruto's words made a blush come across the face of the pseudo-jinchuuriki. "I just wanted to make sure that you didn't get lost on the way to town." Kagome's answer received a very skeptical look from Naruto who didn't believe the excuse for a second. "Okay. Maybe I wanted to know what you'll do when you go see Muyo. Are you going to beat him up?"

"Who knows? Have to hear what he has to say first. If you want to come along don't do anything to cause a problem." Understanding that he was saying that it was all right to tag along Kagome hurried to catch up with him.

Nothing was said by either of them for a while and it would continue until the Kagome finally spoke up. "I know your secret." Naruto showed no sign that he knew what she was talking about except giving her a questionable stare. "I know that you have the demon fox inside of you. I've know since last night when you stopped me from going berserk." Still Naruto maintained a blank stare. "How I know, I'm not sure. All I know is that it feels as though you fill something that I didn't know was missing." In short order, Kagome's face was red as she got closer. "Not saying that I don't like the feeling though."

This finally got a reaction from Naruto as he was caught off guard by what was said. _**"Are you really that dense?"**_ commented Kyuubi. _**"She's become attracted to you. Not uncommon that a female would become enamored by an empowered male."**_ A chuckle was heard from the fox which didn't sit too well with its host. _**"Why not go ahead and give her what she wants. It's not like she would say no."**_

Ignoring Kyuubi's remarks, Naruto gently moved Kagome away. "Sorry. As much as I appreciate the kindness, I got to say no. No offense meant of course."

"It's that girl, isn't it?" asked Kagome who did what she could to hide her sadness from the rejection. "The one with the strange eyes. You two are already together, aren't you?"

"Not really." Naruto quietly confused. "It's complicated. Don't ask." Fortunately the subject was dropped and they made their way to town. Before going to Muyo's house Kagome was made to say elsewhere. Things would go smoother if she wasn't present during the conversation.

Going in things were seemingly casual. "Welcome, Uzumaki." greeted Makoto Muyo. "Hopefully your reason for being here is to tell me that you've taken care of my little problem."

"If you're referring to the creature being dealt with, then no." reported Naruto. Like the older man, he was being calm and composed. "However, there have been things that my friends and I have discovered. Do you mind tell me why you've been buying the land that the ore is under?"

"That's not uncommon. It'll make things easier if fewer people have control. Besides, all those people were paid the amount that they deserved."

Was that before or after they knew about the ore deposit? Along with how much they would get for agreeing to the mining?" No answer was given but by the expression he saw, Naruto knew what it was. "Something tells me that it would've been hard to get those people to sell their land if they knew such information." Muyo's expression only got grimmer. "Also, why have there been men who apparently work for you have been hassling two women?"

"What I do isn't why you were sent here." stated Muyo. He was avoiding the question and showing no sign of giving an answer. "You're here to deal with a problem and was paid a good amount of money to do it." No longer was there the kind Makoto Muyo as he was now a person who wasn't going to take any crap from anybody. "Remember, I'm the client and I want what I paid for to be handled. Do we have an understanding?"

Keeping the first few things that went thorugh his head to himself, Naruto remained calm as he got up from his seat. "Oh, we have an understanding all right. I'll be leaving to do what needs to be done." Nodding his head he took his leave, failing to notice the look that Muyo was giving him.

"_Apparently I won't be able to reply on them after all."_ determined the old man to himself. _"They may have to deal with them as well."_

**00000000**

"Please tell me that you're joking." After the not so pleasant conversation with Muyo, Naruto talked wit his teammates. They were somewhat surprised by how their client's responses but it paled in comparison to what their team leader was suggesting. "You can't be serious."

"I am Choji." Naruto acknowledged. "It's like with Gatô. A different tactic is being used but the reason is the same." Choji knew what he was saying. While he wasn't on that particular mission he was told about it from his friends. "Makoto Muyo sees the mining of the ore as a way to get rich and he's willing to do whatever he can to get what he wants."

"But you're suggesting that we go against him, Naruto." Hinata reminded. "Shinobi are supposed to follow the objectives of our missions and clients without complaint." She hated disagreeing with her friend but that was what she felt.

"Maybe you're right Hinata. However, there are times when duty has to take a step back and do what you feel is the right thing to do." Taking a deep breath, Naruto calmed himself before going overborne. "Our client is someone who's craving money and power and is willing to go so far as to send men to beat around women to get them. Who's to say he would just stop at that."

"We understand." Choji clarified. "However, you got to understand that if we actually go through with this we'll get into serious trouble. Going against orders isn't something that's looked well upon."

Naruto didn't say anything right away as he turned from the two. "I know and that's why you don't have to get involved. It's only right since I'm suppose to be in charge of this mission so I should be the one who should get the blame. I'm not asking you to get involved. I just wanted you to understand." He didn't even turn around to see their reactions but did so when he felt a hand on his shoulder.

"Do you actually believe that we'd allow you to do something like this by yourself?" questioned Choji with a light humor in his voice. "We've done a lot together before and we're not going to stop now."

"We're not just your teammates, Naruto. We're your friends." added Hinata. "Friends help each other, no matter what." She wanted to say something more but started to become shy. "You've been there for me for the good and the bad so I should be there for you now."

Unable to help himself, Naruto allowed a smile to appear. "Thank you, both of you." Remembering why the conversation was being held, he got back to the matter at hand. "All right, enough of that. We need to think about what to do before the time comes."

**00000000**

"Are you sure about this?" It was late and in the shadows of the forest was Makoto Muyo and his four minions. "They are all there?"

"Yes sir." confirmed one of the men. "We've been keeping an eye on this area since earlier today, like you instructed and haven't seen anyone leave." Nothing was said for a while as they waited for who knows what. "Sir, do we have to go through with this? A little extreme, don't you think?" The harsh look that older man gave him silenced whatever he wanted to say next.

"It has to be done." stated Muyo with authority. "I've worked too hard to get this far to have my plans ruined by some pre-adults. This has to be dealt with before we're all caught by the authorities." That stopped any further argument as they all preferred to say out of jail. "Let's go. We can't afford to waste anymore time."

Making sure to keep themselves from begin seen they made their way toward the Yamada house. Quietly making their way inside they immediately saw on the ground were the three Konoha shinobi, soundly sleeping. It was too good of an opportunity to pass up as they were unaware of what was going on around them. Taking the opening, Muyo and his men repeatedly stabbed them and didn't stop until it was believed that they had accomplish what they set out to do.

There moment of triumph was cut short as all three bodies changed from people to logs. "Apparently we were right about you guys paying us a visit." Standing by the doorway were the three presumed dead shinobi. "Good thing we planned ahead. Now is the time to take care of this." What followed was a fight that spilled out to the outside.

Even though outnumbered, the three from Konoha were handling themselves well. While Naruto and Choji each handled one of them men, the two that remained were being handled by Hinata who used her Byakugan to handle the handicap. As this was going on, Makoto Muo watched on, waiting for the opportunity to make an escape. When the opening presented itself he took it. He wouldn't get far as an unexpected obstacle got in the way.

"Now that's just rude of you." Standing in Muyo's way was Naruto Uzumaki. "Leaving so soon after showing up and without even saying goodbye? Don't' you have any manners?" Confused by what was going on, Muyo looked at him and the Naruto that was still fighting one of his men as he tried to make sense of it all. "Probably you should've thought twice before you decided to try and kill two women.

"One of those women that you're referring to is a demon." exclaimed Muyo. "It should be destroyed before it's too late." His words resulted in a scowl coming a cross Naruto's face.

"So you think you've seen a demon?" Slowly a hint of a smirk appeared. Suddenly, Naruto transformed into Fox. "Trust me, you haven't seen anything." Those words were followed by Fox's eyes becoming completely red.

**00000000**

"Keep it away from me! It's not human! Keep it away!" babbled Muyo incoherently over and over again. It was early morning and things have basically been taken cared of. The four men were quickly defeated and tried up to be taken by the authorities. Makoto Muyo however was another story. He had also been detained but was speaking nonsense since being found.

"Looks like he's lost it." proclaimed Naruto, acting completely innocent. "Perhaps everything he's done finally caught up to him."

"Maybe you're right." Choji acknowledged. "Can't be sure what happen since we were busy dealing with his men. Could Kagome have done something without our knowing?"

"That can't be." disputed Hinata. "Both her and Deirdre were miles away while all of this was going on. She couldn't possibly have shown up without us knowing. What Hinata said was true but it wouldn't matter anyway since the one responsible was Naruto.

"_Think we went a bit too far with him?"_ questioned Naruto to his demonic tenant.

"_**Nonsense."**_ Kyuubi quickly disputed. _**"He could've gotten a lot worse than being overwhelmed by the killer intent from the most powerful biju there is. He got off lucky."**_ Silently Naruto agreed with what the fox said.

**00000000**

It wasn't long until the authorities arrived and took the captives and almost immediately the four hired men were willing to tell what had went on if their punishments were lessen. Muyo was a different story as he was practically dragged away as he continued to say things that made no sense. With that done the three of them were standing in front of the women's house to say goodbye.

"Do you have to go already?" asked Deirdre. "If you want you can stay one more day before going."

"Afraid we can't do that." Naruto politely declined. "We had a timeline for this mission and we need to get back to explain what happen here." A brief look of concern came over the women as they knew what that could mean. "Too bad we weren't able to find any truth about this so called creature. If there were such a thing they should be careful in being seen." Understanding what was said, Kagome gave a small nod.

"Thanks for the lunches though." Stated Choji to the food that they were given. "It should save us some time getting back to Konoha."

"Actually, we should be the ones doing the thanking." voiced Kagome. 'Thanks to you three I was saved from possibly becoming a research experiment. I don't think just saying thanks can truly express my appreciation."

"It's not necessary." Hinata remarked. "We did what we thought was right is all."

"She speaks the truth." added Naruto. "But if you want to 'pay us back' return the favor and help someone when they need it." It didn't need to be said that the dark haired woman took what was said to heart. "Well, it's time for us to go. Maybe we'll see each other again." After a few more parting words the shinobi from Konoha left for their journey home.

**00000000**

Days Later…

Before talking, Naruto decided that they should go somewhere more private. The choice of place was just underneath the Hokage Monument but the boy hadn't said anything since getting there. "You wanted to talk with me about something." reminded Hinata. "Mind telling me what it is?" She wasn't sure if she wanted to know what was so important that Naruto wanted to tell her but her curiosity was getting the better of her.

Taking a few calming breaths the spiky haired demon host began to talk. "Remember we came to an understanding when we started the mission." Confusion was evident from the Hyuga girl who couldn't remember what Naruto meant so he elaborated. "When the mission was done we were going to talk about what's going on between us. Actually, it's more about the kiss that I gave you on the night of the festival.

That finally rung a bell with Hinata as she started to become apprehensive about the whole subject. "Do we really have to talk about this? It's not necessary."

"Yes it is." Naruto quickly disputed. "Honestly Hinata, I don't know where the kiss came from. We've been friends for so long that I can't remember when we weren't. That's not to say that I'm upset with it." The mentioning of the kiss resulted in both of them blushing. "It still doesn't mean that it was right for me to do. So I'm sorry."

"You don't need to apologize." said Hinata in a somewhat timid voice. "I didn't really mind." Her confession caused the blush that she already had to become darker.

"Looking back I should've seen it sooner." commented seemingly to himself if anything. "Maybe I'm as dense as everyone says I am. You've got feelings for me, don't you Hinata?" It was more of a statement then a question and the silence from the Hyuga girl was enough to confirm his suspicion. "To tell you the truth Hinata, I'm not sure that what I feel for you goes beyond friendship."

The look that came over Hinata's face was as though she received the worst news possible. It would quickly be replaced with a more passive one. "O-Oh, I und-understand." She was trying to put a brave front but she couldn't completely hide the sadness in her voice. Not wanting to be seen when she finally did lose it, Hinata turned around and started to leave.

"However, that doesn't mean I'm not willing to find out." When hearing that it immediately made Hinata stopped where she was but didn't dare look back. "Maybe there's something more than friendship or maybe there isn't. But I think neither of us wants to look back and think 'what if'?" Throughout tall of that, Hinata showed no signs of what she was thinking. "Choice is up to you Hinata. Whether you want to see if we can be more than friends is for you to decide."

It was only then did the Hyuga girl turned around and it was then that the next instant she rushed over and wrapped her arms around him. She caught Naruto so off guard that he fell to his back with Hinata on top of him. "Can I take that as a yes?" All he got was Hinata pressing her face against Naruto's shirt and letting out tears of happiness.

* * *

I hope that you readers like what I did. Hopefully the explanation that I gave for how Kagome has some of the nine-tailed fox's power. Maybe it's a little silly but it was the best one I could give. At the moment she isn't going to be reappearing in the story again but that could change. What happen with Haku is a good example. In any case, don't expect to be seeing her again in any of the upcoming chapters.

Another thing I did that I hope was done nicely was getting Naruto and Hinata finally getting together. They're together but not exactly a couple. What I mean is that I wanted to take things slowly with them and not rush anything. Plan now is to progress their possible relationship bit by bit.

That's pretty much. Expect the next chapter to be out before Christmas. No later than a week before it. Until then, see ya.


	48. Insecurity

With the holidays coming I decided to go ahead and put up the newest chapter as a give to those who read this story. Hope you enjoy it. Disclaimer, I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Chapter 48:  
Insecurity

"Chidori." In a secluded area, Sasuke was training which involved using the lightening jutsu that he was taught by Kakashi. Seeing the damage that the attack had created and saw that there was a good size crater in the large boulder that he had been using. Despite the impressive display Sasuke wasn't the least bit pleased. "It's not good enough."

Again he prepared to do another Chidori. All the while he thought back to what happen when he encountered Itachi. **"Go away little brother. I don't have time for you."** The chakra began to create the lightening that focus in Sasuke's hand began to grow as even more moments from that incident. **"You're weak, little brother. It's because you lack the hatred."** His attack seemed to respond to its user as the chirping sound became louder.

"**I know that your true target was Naruto."** He remembered hearing what Naruto's godfather, Jiraiya said when he intervened. That was final straw as Sasuke once again thrust a Chidori into the boulder. The result of it was the same as before.

"_Why would you want him? What makes him so special?"_ The Uchiha's anger was getting to him as he was clenching his fists tightly. _"Was everything I done for nothing? I _must_ get stronger " _He was so consumed by his anger that he hadn't notice that his fists were clenching so tightly that his fingernails were piercing into his hands and blood was dripping to the ground.

**00000000**

At a hidden location in Oto, Orochimaru smirked at something. "The time has come. Go to Konoha." That order was directed toward the four individuals that were kneeling before him. None of them said anything as they took off to complete their assignment.

"_Soon I'll gain what I seek."_ Glancing down he looked at his bandaged arms. _"The Third may have prevented me from fulfilling my revenge but once I obtain the key I'll finish what I started during the invasion."_ The mere thought of it had Orochimaru to medical laugh.

**00000000**

"This is nice." voiced the boy.

"Yeah it is." agreed the girl that was with him.

In an open field Naruto Uzumaki was on the ground, leaning against a tree while Hinata Hyuga was leaning him. They weren't doing anything particular as they were simply the scenery. Neither of them said anything as they were enjoying the company of the other.

"Are you all right? You're shivering." spoke Naruto in a calm voice. "Getting cold?"

"No. I'm fine." Hinata was able to say. She was blushing but not to the extent that she normally did. Maneuvering around she looked at the blond who seemed to be at ease. "Can I ask you a question Naruto?" A nod from the boy gave her the go ahead. "Are you really okay that we're…like this?"

"You mean dating?" Naruto clarified. When it made the girl blush even harder he laughed quietly. "Well, we've been going out for two weeks and we both enjoyed it. So yeah, I'm okay that we're…like this. Why do you ask? Starting to have second thoughts?"

Hinata shook her head. "Of course I'm not. It's just that I never thought that this would ever happen." Feeling shy she lowered her head. "Sometimes I worry that this is merely a dream and I'll wake up one day."

She kept her head to the ground as she couldn't get the nerve to look up. It wasn't until she felt Naruto put a hand on her chin and lifted her head to where Hinata was looking at the boy's face. "It isn't a dream Hinata. This is reality." Leaning down he gave her a quick kiss on her forehead.

The result being was the Hyuga blushing to the point that her entire face was red. Though they have been going out for sometime, Hinata wasn't used to intimate signs of affection. "It's getting late. I better get you home." Both of them were a bit reluctant in getting out of the position that they were in but they got up as they knew that this wouldn't be the last time that they would have times like this.

**00000000**

"Why wasn't I told about this sooner?" asked Tsunade. She and a shinobi were in one of Konoha's prison units that held some of the village's prisoners. "I should've been told about this sooner."

"My deepest apologizes." excused the accompanying shinobi. "It happened around the time of the invasion. Along with recovering from it and your Hokage coronation it wasn't an important matter. It wasn't until we were promise information that it change. Only thing is that it won't be given unless you're present. Sorry about bothering with such things."

"Do not worry, Ibiki. It sounds important. Besides, it gets me away from doing more paperwork." They continued to walk as they were close to arriving at one of the holding cells. "So, what do we know about the person?" Looking at the clipboard that he had with him Ibiki read what was on it.

"Name: Kin Tsuchi. Village of Origin: Oto. She was part of the team that their team sent for the Chunin Exam. We captured her when one of the ANBU squads saw her attacked by fellow Oto shinobi. She was saved but when informing us what her village was planning on doing she was placed confined until her claims could be proven." Putting away the clipboard Ibiki gave his own opinion on the matter. "Please take to mind Hokage; what she told us helped us to save many people. She gave it willingly so she may do the same here."

Taking that into consideration, Tsunade started with her own cross-examination. "You said that you had some information that we would want and only tells us if I was here. Well, I'm here, start spilling."

In her cell, the girl Kin was sitting against the far wall and her head down. Only after the woman started talking did she look up. "I'll talk. But I have some request that I would like to be met. First, I want to be free from this prison and clear of any punishment that I may of receiveed. Second, I wish to become an official member of Konoha."

"You really think you're in any position to make any demands?" inquired Tsunade in a impassive tone. "Why would we consider them in the first place?"

"Well, since I was captured I've been cooperative. As the man with the scars said, the information that I gave helped during the invasion." Ibiki didn't take kindly to how he was referred to but now wasn't the time or place. "Also, I wouldn't mind sticking it to my now former village and that bastard snake." Kin's resentment was clearly noted. _"Wanting to sacrifice me to bring back one of the past Hokage's to life after my loyalty to him. Somehow I'll make you pay for that, Orochimaru."_

Tsunade said nothing as she actually considered the proposal. "We'll take your demands into consideration. But let's get to why I'm here. You said that you may have some information that we would find useful."

Seeing that was as good as she was going to get at the moment, Kin decided to tell them what she knew. "What I have pertains to your former teammate, Lady Hokage." That got Tsunade's attention. "I've heard that you had a run in with him not long ago and I'm certain that there was something…off about him." No confirmation was made but it wasn't needed. "Well, thanks to my former teammate, Dosu, I know what it is and how that tie to what he has planned to do next. Have I got your attention now?"

The leader of Konoha had kept quiet as she took in everything that had been said. She indeed had a good theory about what she saw during her encounter with Orochimaru but that all it was. _"I may as well see if I'm right."_ "Okay. Start talking."

**00000000**

"Well, we're almost there." As they reluctantly decided, both Naruto and Hinata returned to the village. Their destination being the large compound that the Hyuga family lived in. "If you want we could always take the longer way to your home." Naruto halfway joked and suggested. "Maybe we could just say that we got lost."

What the blond said had made the Hyuga girl laugh. "Afraid we can't do that. It didn't work the first time or the time after that. Wouldn't want a repeat of what happen last time." Reminder of what Hinata was referring to caused her companion to groan. With some hesitation Hinata reached over to grab the boy's arm and leaned closer to him. "Let's not worry about that. Today was nice so let's not end this on a bad note."

Forgetting all about his brief annoyance, Naruto instead focus on the close contact that he had with the girl beside him. _"This is nice."_ His moment of content came to an abrupt end as he spotted standing at the entrance way of the Hyuga compound was the family leader, Hinata's father, Hiashi. "Well, it was good while it lasted." "Her she is. You can call off the search party."

The Hyuga leader didn't show any emotion as he watched as the two teenagers made their way over. "I don't know what you mean Uzumaki. I was merely outside getting some air." Hiashi stated as if he was saying the simplest thing there was.

While there wasn't any sign of deception Naruto had his suspicions. He thought about pushing the issue further but remembered what Hinata said as they were walking over. _"She wouldn't like if I started getting into an argument in front of her."_ Forgetting about Hiashi, Naruto focused on girl standing beside him. "This is where we part ways Hinata. I hope that you can hold out until we see each other again."

Naruto was of course joking around which Hinata quickly picked up on. "I'm s-sure I can m-managed Naruto." she was able to get out in between laughing and minor stuttering. In response, Naruto quickly leaned in and gave her a kiss on the cheek. Hinata couldn't even say anything as the act shocked her and caused her to blush heavily as the person responsible took his leave while waving back to her. She was so out of it that she made her way into the compound and not noticing the indescribable look that her father had on his face.

**00000000**

"You look happy." Turning to where the voice had come from Naruto saw Sakura who had a smirk on her face. "I haven't seen you this happy in quite a while. Had another date with Hinata?' All she got was the smile on Naruto's face getting bigger. "By the look on your face I'll take that as a yes." The two of them would continue to talk while walking down the road. "Hinata must feel lucky about the two of you being together.

"Honestly Sakura, I feel that I'm the one who's lucky." stated Naruto truthfully. "With all the crazy things that I've been a part of this past year it's good to be able to forget about it and be normal. Being with Hinata makes me feel like I don't have that pressure on my shoulders. I can just be Naruto Uzumaki and that was something that I've been missing for some time."

As he talked Sakura couldn't help but be a bit jealous. _"I'm glad that Naruto and Hinata are happy with each other. It makes me wish that I had that to."_ Of course, when she was thinking that she had a certain Uchiha in mind. Almost as if calling for it, both Sakura and Naruto saw Sasuke standing a few feet ahead of them. She was about to call out to him but stopped when she saw the look on his face. Her companion seemed not to notice.

"Hello there, Sasuke. How's it going?" That only seem to make the scowl that the Uchiha had to grow.

"Naruto…fight me. Now!" The un-expectance of that request was a surprise. Add to the fact that he was basically demanding a fight didn't help make things any clearer.

"What? I haven't seen you in over a week and all of a sudden you show up and demand a fight with me. Don't get me wrong, I appreciate the attention but you could've said, 'How are you doing Naruto?' or something like that. There's such a thing as being polite." Naruto's words didn't seem to do anything except infuriate Sasuke even more. Whether the blond realize this or not was anyone's guess. "As for you wanting to fight me, I decline."

"**You're correct. The Akatsuki wishes to use Naruto to accomplish its goals."** What Itachi said repeated in the young Uchiha's mind. Safe to say it didn't help to calm the anger that he was feeling.

"Coward." muttered Sasuke as the boy walked off. "You're afraid to fight me, aren't you?" Only sign that his words had an affect was that Naruto stopped walking. "That's it, isn't it? You're afraid that I'll beat you and show how weak you are."

A tense moment was felt and stuck in the middle was Sakura as she couldn't understand what she was witnessing. _"Why are you doing this Sasuke? This isn't like you."_ An uneasy feeling started to come over the girl as she thought of a possible reason. _"Could it be because of the mark?"_

As for Naruto, he had said nothing and it was unknown how he would respond. Finally, he looked over his shoulder and smirked at the person taunting him. "Nice try Sasuke. You almost had me there. But as much as I would like to, the answer is still no." His reply came as a surprise as more times than not Naruto would've let his anger get the best of him. "Now, if you excuse me, I'll be leaving. I don't want to ruin what has been a great day by arguing with you Sasuke."

Much as he hate to admit it but the Uchiha was running out of ideas. He had hoped that his taunting would get to his teammate but it failed. Just as he was thinking of using physical provocation an idea came to him. "You're talking about you dating Hinata?" Like before, his words got Naruto to stop.

"For the life of me I can't understand why someone of her status would want to be with the likes of you." Instead of looking over his shoulder, Naruto turned completely around to face the boy and this time he was showing that what had been said was getting to him. "Maybe I'm wrong. For a Hyuga she doesn't live up to the name. She after all was beaten mercilessly by her cousin. Perhaps the two of you really deserve each other."

At last Sasuke got what he wanted as Naruto was clearly showing rage from what had been said and was close to attacking the one responsible. "Wanted to fight me, Sasuke? You got it." His anger was evident in each word he said.

Getting what he wanted, the Uchiha smirked slightly before jerking his head. "Follow me." Naruto said nothing as he followed his soon to be opponent.

They were a couple of feet away before the silent observer, Sakura hurried after them. She had witnessed the entire incident but wasn't able to speak up. As she went after her two teammates she was pleading to herself. _"Why is this happening? The two of them don't have to do this. Please stop."_

**00000000**

Hinata didn't even notice where she was going. It was as though her feet were on autopilot as she arrived at her room. She finally started to come out of her haze when she entered the room but couldn't get of the smile that was on her face. Taking off her jacket she walked around the room until she stood in front of a table that had three pictures on it.

One was when she was younger and Hanabi was only a few months old and was being held by their mother. It was somewhat saddening as it was not long after that she passed away. The second one was the two sisters were older and standing on either side of their father. Last of the pictures was the most recent and something that she held dear.

The day after returning to Konoha from their mission, Naruto took her out. They had gone out before but they were merely get-togethers between friends but this was the first time they went out on an actual date. It wasn't anything elaborate as they had a nice walk followed by having dinner at Ichiraku Ramen.

They were going to leave after dinner but were stopped when Ayame asked them to wait. She remarked that such an event should be remembered and she followed that by presented the camera that she was holding. In the picture it was standing in front of the stand, Hinata was all nervous while Naruto, smiling brightly, stood beside her with his arm behind her doing a piece sign. Hinata smiled when she was given her copy.

"_It's only been two weeks but it feels like it's been longer."_ thought the Hyuga girl as she picked up the aforementioned picture. _"Being with him was something that would be a dream and nothing more."_ Remembering what Naruto had said earlier brought a small smile to Hinata's face as she lightly touched the place on her forehead that he kissed. _"He was right. This is reality and I would take this over a dream any day."_

"Happy, aren't you sister?" Startled by the unexpected voice, Hinata dropped the picture frame as she turned around and saw standing at the doorway was her sister, Hanabi. Showing no emotion the younger Hyuga made her way over to her sister. When she was only a few feet away she leaned down and picked up the dropped item. When Hanabi saw what it was she let what appeared to be a small smile to show itself.

Hinata gratefully took the frame and set it back on the table. "Are you really wanting to have this?" asked Hanabi in a neutral tone. "Is having a relationship with Naruto Uzumaki worth the trouble that might come because of it?" Though they had become closer it was unusual for the two Hyuga sisters to talk about such a thing, especially Hanabi being the one to start it.

"I have no antagonism towards him but the same can't be said about our father and most of the Hyuga family." What she was speaking was the truth as it was no secret that their family had some unknown resentment toward the boy. "You must already know that unless things change the chances that the relationship between the two of you won't last." With nothing else to say, Hanabi made her way out of Hinata's room. "For what it's worth, I hope that things work out somehow for you, sister."

Hinata said nothing and didn't even register her sister's leaving. She took a couple deep breaths to keep her composure. While she didn't want to admit it she knew that what had been said was true. She had told Naruto about it once but he merely waved off the concern and saying that it would turn out okay in the end which didn't help ease the concern that she felt.

"_Maybe I shouldn't worry about it. Naruto said it would be all right in the end and he always lives up to what he says so I should believe that he'll find a way to do it again."_ In the end all that Hinata could do was hope.

**00000000**

"So here's where you want to fight." Looking around Naruto could see the damage that had been done to the area. "Man, you sure have been busy. Haven't really done much else in your pare time, have you?"

"No more talking. Let's fight." Sasuke was eager to get things started and could hardly wait to get things started. "Now is time to prove how different we are."

"What's the deal with you? Usually you don't talk this much before a fight." Unlike his sooner to be opponent, the spiky haired boy was acting like he didn't have a care in the world. "Not starting to regret calling me out, are you?"

"Why would I? It's not like you're actually going to beat me? Have you forgotten how it was when we were in the academy?" Sasuke stopped talking when he saw the look on his upcoming opponent's face. "What's with the smile? You find this amusing?"

"Honestly, I do." replied Naruto calmly. His smile seemed to get bigger. "You were better than me at the academy and maybe you still are." Slowly his smile started to go away. "But things are changing. I'm not really the idiotic knucklehead like I was back then."

If possible, the anger that Sasuke was feeling grew. "What a load of crap. Don't know why Itachi is interested in you."

"Ah, so that's the reason." remarked Naruto. "The reason why you're so upset is because your brother came for me and not you."

While that was already going through his head, having it being said made it worse. "He must've been mistaken. Why someone such as him would even waste their time with the likes of you is beyond me." Whether he knew it or not his Sharingan activated as if to further show its user's annoyance.

"Maybe he didn't want to waste his time on someone who's a weak, Sasuke." That was the final straw. As if some unheard shot went off, the two of them went at one another. They tried to punch each other but their fists were caught by the other. Sasuke took control as he slammed Naruto into a tree and repeatedly punch him. It was only when his arm was caught did the pummeling stop. "Okay, it's my turn."

While still holding onto his opponent's arm he grabbed the front of his shirt. He would follow it by pulling Sasuke forward while he moved to the side. That resulted in the Uchiha going face first into the tree that was used earlier. Stunned by the move it took a while for him to recover and when he did he saw that Naruto was nowhere to be seen.

"Now isn't this rich." voiced the hidden blond who couldn't be located. "With all your self bravado and attitude, you're just a little boy who wishes for the attention of his brother." A sudden glimpse of something orange and black was seen. Without thinking Sasuke threw a kunai and it hit Naruto. The achievement would be for nothing as the boy became a puff of smoke. This only seemed to amuse Naruto further as he remained hidden. "What's a matter? Did I strike a nerve?"

"No more bullshit!" yelled Sasuke who was angrier then he ever been. "Where are you, you idiot?" Silence was all that Sasuke got. "Quit hiding and fight."

"In due time." remarked Naruto while still hidden and it was impossible to tell where he was. "But why can't I have some fun before I end it?"

Throughout all of this, Sakura watched from a safe distance. She was shocked as she was witnessing as two of the people that she cared for going at one another. _"It's not supposed to happen. Why do the two of them have to fight each other? There's no reason."_ Like before she wanted to try and stop them but couldn't get her body to move in to do so.

"_Where is he?"_ Looking all around Sasuke couldn't see where Naruto was. _"Thanks to his Shadow Clone Jutsu he could come from everywhere. Not like it'll matter."_

Of all the ways that the Uchiha thought his opponent could've attack from, coming from under the ground wasn't one of them. So when two hands broke through the ground and grabbed his legs it caught him off guard to the point that he didn't notice when a blond charge at him.

What happen next was Naruto punching Sasuke into the air. That was followed by four identical blonds sliding in and kicking him with each one sending the dark haired boy even higher. With him now in the air, Sasuke tried to clear his head but before he could though, the four Narutos that kicked him were around him and each grabbed one of his limbs. All the while the one that punched him was still on the ground but didn't mean that he wasn't doing anything.

"_What kind of jutsu is that?"_ In Naruto's hand was a Rasengan and was ready to use it. Not wanting to know what it would actually do, Sasuke was able to free himself from his captor's grasp and destroy them with some well placed hits.

With those obstacles out of the way he focused on the problem that was on the ground. Going through a series of hand signs he fire a stream of fire from his mouth onto Naruto. The jutsu was strong enough that the flames consumed the entire area. Stopping the flow of fire Sasuke tried to see what the results of his attack were. Whatever probabilities that he could predict, what he saw wasn't one of them.

From within the flames, something could be seen. Slowly the flames started to surround themselves around that something. Things became clearer as that something was revealed to be two Narutos. One was in front of the other and neither of them was using the Rasengan. Instead, the one who was in front had his right arm encircled in his newest jutsu.

When all of the fire was gone so was that Naruto, which was revealed to be a shadow clone. That left only one Naruto who had the same wind jutsu as the clone. Leaping up he planned on going at the Sasuke and his Chidori head on.

Recognizing what was about to happen, Sakura finally got herself to move and immediately to where her two friends and teammates were fighting. _"This is getting out of hand. It needs to be stopped before it's too late."_ With her concern clouding her better judgment Sakura rushed in, not realizing that she was walking into the path of the two dangerous attacks.

Both Naruto and Sasuke saw their female teammate and the predicament that she put herself in. They tried to stop themselves but couldn't. Unknown to either of them, they had the same line of thinking.

"_I can't stop."_

* * *

Well, there you go. I hope you liked how I did the start of the Naruto and Sasuke fight. Wanted to have the reason for it happening being somewhat simlar to how it was done in the series but added my own twist. Remember, Naruto doesn't consider Sasuke as much of a "friend" as in the series so the interaction between them will be different.

Also, I hope you like how I did the scene between Naruto and Hinata. I want to progress their possible slowly and not rush it like it's done in other stories.

As for the apperance of Kin, you'll have to wait and see. I believe you'll like what I have plan. At least I hope so.

That's all until I update again sometime next month. Until then, see ya and have a happy holidays.


	49. Desertion

Hey there readers. I hope that you guys have a happy holidays. It's the start of a new year and along with it is the first chapter of 2010. Disclaimer, I don't own Naruto.

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Chapter 49:  
Desertion

"_This is getting out of hand. It needs to be stopped before it's too late."_ With her concern clouding her better judgment Sakura rushed in, not realizing that she was walking into the path of the two dangerous attacks.

Both Naruto and Sasuke saw their female teammate and the predicament that she put herself in. They tried to stop themselves but couldn't. Unknown to either of them, they had the same line of thinking.

"_No, I can't stop."_

Thankfully neither of the attacks hit as the copycat jonin of Konoha, Kakashi Hatake made an appearance redirected their route to a collection of trees. _"Naruto was that jutsu…"_

Both boys hit their news targets and when all of the smoke was clear it appeared like both of them were okay. The first to recover was Sasuke who saw that the tree that the Chidori had taken down the tree that it hit. Looking over to his former opponent he saw that Naruto was getting up to however what really caught his attention was that the tree that his attack had hit was completely broken and the same was with the two that were behind it.

This only seemed to make Sasuke even angrier. Before he could convey that feeling his attention was diverted to his sensei that was standing on a high branch of a neighboring tree. "What was that about, Sasuke? That Chidori isn't something that should be aimed toward a comrade. Were you actually trying to kill Naruto?" The Uchiha gave no reply to the accusation as he just left without looking back.

Unable to deal with one of his students, Kakashi shifted his attention toward the other one. "Mind explaining what was going on, Naruto? Also why you allowed things to turn out like it did?"

Naruto didn't answer right away as he dusted off his clothes before he gave a defiant stare at his sensei. "Thought it was pretty obvious what was going on. Sasuke and I fought, became serious and before anything could be settled you interfered." How the spiky haired boy spoke lacked any consideration for who the jonin was. "And don't try to make it sound like it was my fault. If you were actually watching and not reading one of your stupid perverted books you would've seen that bastard who tried burn me alive. Seems only right to do what I need to do to defend myself."

During all of this, Kakashi couldn't help but to show signs of annoyance at how his student was acting. "That may be the case but that doesn't mean you had to use jutsus that you shouldn't be using in the first place." Obviously he was referring to the Rasengan and the Wind Edge.

"Why can't I?" Naruto inquired in defiance. They were taught to me and I learned how to use them. After all, I think I have a right to use them since they were created by my father." For the briefest of moments, Naruto considered using one of those jutsus on the copycat shinobi but decided not to. "Now, unless you have anything that's worth hearing I'll be leaving."

As he started to leave he walked pass Sakura who was still trying to collect herself from everything that happen. "Next time Sakura, please don't interfere." The words were low but the meaning behind them was clear. Turning around she started to go after her blond haired teammate but stopped to give her sensei a quick bow before continuing.

Soon the only one in the area was Kakashi and even though he had a mask on you could tell that he had a discourage look on his face. _"What has happen to this team? Where was the camaraderie between them? Perhaps it was never there to begin with."_

**00000000**

"_Why? Damn it, why?" _That question continued to go through Sasuke's head as he tried to figure out what actually happen. The whole event continually played in his head and he still couldn't understand why it turned out like it did. _"How is it possible? He's just some dead last idiot. Then why is that he's grew stronger than I have? It doesn't make sense." _Sasuke was so focus on trying to grasp what took place that he didn't even notice that he was being watched.

"So that's him?" exclaimed one of the observers. He was a brown skinned man with light black hair that was tied in a bushy ponytail. What he was wearing was a off-white shirt with a black one underneath and black shorts. However, what was really visible about the person was that he had six arms, making him resemble somewhat like a spider. He doesn't like much."

"That's a fucking understatement." added the only female member of the group. She was wearing a similar outfit as her companions with the exception being that she had a some sort of hat on her head and over her unruly light red hair. "Why Orochimaru wants with a piece of shit like him is beyond me."

"Now Tayuya, such language isn't suitable for a lady." chastised a somewhat overweight guy with patches of orange hair above his ears and on top of his head.

"Screw you, you fat bastard." snapped the now identified as Tayuya. "What are we waiting for? Let's just go and get him already."

"Not so fast." voiced the final member of the group. He had long shaggy gray hair that covered most of the right side of his face. A somewhat strange thing about him was that on his back was some sort of object that had the same colored hair. "Orochimaru gave us orders and we need to follow them unless we want to face his wrath." All of them were all in agreement what that statement as the snake sannin wasn't someone you wanted mad at you.

They were about to go ahead and 'introduce' themselves to the young Uchiha but stopped when someone beat them to it. "I guess we'll have to wait a little while longer." suggested Sakon. None of the others wanted to agree but knew that keeping their presence hidden was one of their main priorities. So all they could do was to wait.

**00000000**

"What's the meaning of this?" demanded Sasuke. He tried to free himself but the wires that secure him to the tree made that impossible. With the option of escaping not a possibility he settled by glaring at the one who was keeping him there.

"I had to do something." explained Kakashi, the one behind the detaining. "You're not really someone who's willing to standstill while I give a lecture." Seeing no way out, the boy seemed to be willing listen. "Sasuke…quit this quest for revenge of yours." Within an instant the Uchiha's hostilely from earlier had returned with force.

"In my life of a shinobi I've seen how bad people like can get and in the end they didn't get any real satisfaction once they achieved their revenge." There wasn't any scolding or reprimanding in Kakashi's words and that help to ease the anger that Sasuke was feeling, if only a little. "If you continue you'll only suffer more. Even if you succeed in gaining that revenge, all you'll have left is nothing."

"What do you know?!" Sasuke nearly shouted. "How can you possibly know what I'm going through?" Suddenly the anger that he had been exhibiting changed to one that was threaten. "Perhaps I should take away slmone that's close to you so that you can understand how I feel."

For his part, there wasn't any immediate reaction from Kakashi so there was no telling what he heard had affected him. Of all the possible that could've happen, having him practically smiling. "Sadly, that wouldn't work. In my case, all those that I've cared about are dead." That unexpected reply was such a surprise that Sasuke inadvertently let his anger go.

"I've lived long than you and seen truly terrible and sad things. Fortunately for us we have people that are close to us." That was obviously directed toward the two other members of their team. "A reason why I taught you the Chidori was so you could use it to help protect those who you hold dear. Think hard about what I've said. I need to head out for a mission now and I hope that when I return you understand truth to my words."

Kakashi would release his grip on the wire then left but his departure wasn't even acknowledged by Sasuke as he actually thought about what had been said. He was stay sitting in that tree for so long that day had become night but even then he hardly noticed. The jonin's words kept repeating through his head and ever time he started to consider taking his advice the words and actions from his brother Itachi resurfaced and squash those chances. _"Damn it. Damn it."_

If things weren't bad enough, he all of a sudden was swarmed by the four individuals that had been secretly watching him. "Who the hell are you guys?" Sasuke's tone was even as he gave each of them guarded looks.

"We're the Oto Four." announced the person with the six arms. "I'm Kidomaru of the East Gate."

"Jirobo of the South Gate." added the rotund individual.

"Tayuya of the North Gate." stated the cursing female.

"Sakon of the West Gate." informed the final member of the group.

As soon as the introductions were made they went on the attack. All at once four of them went at Sasuke who still didn't have a clue why it was happening. Putting aside his confusion, he defended himself against the four-on-one assault. Using what he had in his arsenal and fueled by the anger that he was still feeling he knocked them all into a pile. There wouldn't be any triumph would be short as the pile of bodies was revealed to be nothing more than logs. Obviously it was a result of a substitution jutsu.

"You've caught me at a bad time." Those words were directed toward the Oto Four who were standing that not far behind Sasuke who didn't look slightest bit hurt. "If you want to continue then I should warn you that I won't be holding back." It was clear that he was being true with his warning.

"Quit spouting nonsense." retorted Sakon. "Why don't you put your words where your mouth is and come at us. That is of course you're all talk and no action." Not taking kindly to the taunts, Sasuke went at them. "I'll take care of this."

The two went at it and with the use of wire, Sasuke got the advantage. However, when he went for the possible finishing blow he was knocked back by an unexpected blow. _"How the hell did he get a shot in?"_ Not having time to think about it, the fight resumed but before Sasuke could gain control his arms were trapped by some kind of thread from Kidomaru and then hit by Jirobo. The result being that it gave Sakon the opening to finish things.

"I think it's time to see what sound your ribs make as they get beat on. Do try to not have them break so soon." Just as Sakon was going to back up his words, he was hit into the air by a sudden kick. Following that up with what he got from Rock Lee; Sasuke performed the Lion's Barrage that slammed Sakon down.

Tired and battered, the Uchiha got to his feet and looked at the three remaining Oto shinobi who didn't look the least bit phased about what happen to their teammate. "Well? Which one of you three want to be next?"

None of them would speak up as someone beat them to it. "Is that the best you can do?" Getting back to his feet was Sakon and by the looks of it, the Lion's Barrage didn't do any damage. "If so then you're even weaker than I thought."

"_What's going on? All of my attacks hit. So why didn't they have any affect?"_ Without much thought, Sasuke went at the blue haired shinobi but was swiftly dealt with and was being held in the air by one of his legs.

"Why Orochimaru would be interested in such a pathetic person is beyond me." pondered Sakon with slight disgust. "Kimimaro would've been a much better choice."

"What do you expect?" answered Tayuya as her and the two other members of the group came over. "Being in this shitty village playing shinobi with his friends would make anyone weak." The foul mouth girl's words stung for the Uchiha as subconsciously he thought that was the case. "If you truly wish for strength then come with us. By doing so you'll get the strength that you seek from Orochimaru." Sasuke's shock was evident.

**00000000**

"I'm sorry about what I did."

"For the last time Sakura, you can't quit apologizing." repeated Naruto for umpteenth time. It had been an hour or so since the fight between Naruto and Sasuke came to an abrupt end. Since then Sakura, who had followed him when he left the scene, apologized for getting in the middle of her teammates' fight. "Although I wasn't able to give Sasuke the beating that he deserved, I was at least able to get out some of the frustration that I've had. It's too bad that our damn sensei got involved before things could be settled."

Obviously that last part was directed toward the resentment that Naruto had for Kakashi constantly trying to pry into the boy's life. Got even worse when Sakura told him about their sensei in a way propose that she tells him about whatever she learned about her spiky haired friend. Of course Sakura told him that he wouldn't do such a thing and Naruto simply told her that she didn't really expect that she actually would.

"Do you think that Sasuke acted like he did because of the curse seal that Orochimaru gave him?" That was a possibility and honestly, Sakura hoped that was the reason why. If nothing else, it would give the Sharingan user a reasonable excuse for why he acted. "You don't think that Sasuke would actually leave the village to go to him?"

"Who's to say?" debated Naruto. "Sasuke clearly has issues and the curse seal is making them worse." The logic behind the demon host's assumption didn't sound like it could've been that far from the truth. Nonetheless, there's no way he abandon Konoha for Orochimaru. There's just no way." His assurance was contagious as Sakura was starting to feel the same.

"_**Do you truly believe that?"**_ question Kyuubi. _**"You think that this situation is really over?"**_ Naruto gave no answer as honestly he wasn't that sure himself.

**00000000**

"Why are we even wasting our time with this weakling?" Becoming annoyed, Sakon tossed Sasuke away. "It's no point to have you come by force but if it was up to me I would've already killed you for your hesitation."

"Shut up." muttered Sasuke in a voice that could barely be heard. "Why don't you try and see if you can?" As he talked, the seal that helped contain the curse seal began to slip. "You don't know what I'm capable of." Glaring at the Oto Four they were surprised to see the markings that were associated with the mark.

Sasuke tried to use his new burst of energy to attack but in mere moments he was knocked down again. "That was surprising. However, you're not the only one that Orochimaru was interested in." Moving his hair aside, Sakon showed that he had the curse seal too. "A word of advice, you should've use that mark so recklessly. Since you're only at the first state it'll slowly eat away at you. Longer you use it the sooner it'll destroy your mind." Though he hated to follow the suggestion, Sasuke went ahead and suppressed the mark back into the seal.

"If you want to control your curse seal and be able to advanced to the next state then come with us." added Kidomaru. "You don't then it's only a matter of time until that mark consumes you."

"What these two shits are saying is that unless you want to stay here and play shinobi you'll accept the offer." simplified Tayuya in her own way. "But doing so would turn you into Orochimaru's slave. Therefore you'll be bound to him forever." This is where you need to make a choice. Are you going to stay here and try to forget about your vengeance? Forget about Itachi?" The foulmouthed girl's words stuck a cord with the Sharingan user as the hatred that he had for his brother briefly resurfaced.

"Staying in this village will only make you forget about what your purpose should be." voiced Sakon. "Only when you cut the ties to those who are holding you back will you be able to succeed in completely your purpose. We'll give you a day to make a decision." The four of them would leave but had a few parting words. "Don't forget your purpose."

Now left alone, Sasuke just sat there, not moving as thought about everything that had occurred. There wasn't any indication of what he was actually thinking or if he made a decision. It wasn't until he clinched his fists tightly did it seem that a decision was made.

**00000000**

"You think he'll accept the offer?" questioned Jirobo. All four Oto shinobi hurried from rooftop to rooftop as they tried to leave the village.

"Who's to say." replied Sakon. "But likely he will. You saw the look in his eyes. He's someone who'll do whatever it takes to get what he wants."

"Well, will find out soon enough." spoke up Kidomaru. "I just thought of something. Since we're in Konoha, why don't we take care of that other problem of Orochimaru's?" The six armed shinobi didn't have to clarify what he meant as they all knew what it was.

"No." answered Sakon simply. "We were given orders to do one thing and that was it. Besides, we're supposed to keep our presence here unknown. Doing what you're suggesting Kidomaru won't help us in doing that."

"I don't see why we can't." voiced Tayuya. "We just need to find some fucking fox boy and kill him. It sounds pretty damn simple to me." The argument about whether they sound go ahead with the 'extracurricular' task or not went on for a while but it was decided to let it not go for it. In no time the Oto Four were able to leave Konoha without anyone being the wiser.

**00000000**

A Day Later…

"_This is the right decision."_ After deciding what to do, Sasuke went immediately went to his home and didn't come out all day. The reason being was that he was getting everything that he needed when he left Konoha. That was correct. Sasuke Uchiha had decided to abandon the village to accept Orochimaru's offer to gain power. Having gotten everything in his traveling pack he left his home, not planning on returning again.

It was a quiet night and Sasuke casually walked so he wouldn't draw any unwanted attention on himself. Seemed like he was going to get away without being spotted but that wasn't the case as someone stood in his way. "What are you doing here Sakura?" Indeed the person that was in Sasuke's way was teammate and not so secret infatuated Sakura Haruno. "Shouldn't you be home asleep?"

Sakura didn't reply as she instantly noticed the pack that was over the Uchiha's shoulder. It didn't take long for her to put everything together. "This is the only way out of the village. I just waited here until you finally showed up." She sounded depress as she spoke but did what she could to keep it hidden.

Whether he failed to notice or didn't even care, Sasuke didn't respond to his teammate's feelings as he started to walk around her. "Just go home and get some sleep. This doesn't concern you."

"Why are you doing this Sasuke? Is your need for revenge really that important?" Sakura's questions didn't get answered right away but it at least got Sasuke to stop walking. "I know about what happen to your family and it's horrible but this isn't the way to deal with it."

Silence was the only thing that the girl got for a while and she thought that maybe she said too much. Instead of retaliating, Sasuke finally responded although he didn't turn around to face her. "For a while I thought that I could forget the past and be content in being on a team with you and Naruto. However, I've realize the truth. I'm an avenger and I'll never be like you or Naruto."

The seriousness that was behind that last statement drove in how determined Sasuke was to go through with his goal. "Each of us got something that we're striving for. It's just that we're taking different paths to reach them." Saying what he wanted to say the young Uchiha started to leave but again was stopped when Sakura spoke up.

"Please don't leave Sasuke. Honestly I don't know what you must be going through. I've got my family and friends but the thought of losing you is something that I never want to experience." You could tell by the emotion behind those words that the pink haired girl was being completely honest. "I care so much abut you Sasuke that I'll do anything for you. If you stay I'll promise to make sure that you'll never regret it. I'll even help you in your revenge if that what it takes. So please, don't leave."

Like before, you could tell that Sakura was speaking the truth. It was getting to the point that she couldn't holdback the tears that were flowing from her eyes. What made things worse was that Sasuke hadn't said anything and showed no sign on whether her words had actually reached him.

After a couple of moments of unbearable silence he turned to look at her. "You're really are annoying, you know that?" Saying that he started to walk away again and when she saw this Sakura reacted without thinking.

"Don't leave!" There was no response. "I'll scream if you do." Just as those words left her mouth, Sasuke flickered away and reappeared behind her. Caught off guard, Sakura didn't do anything.

"Sakura…thank you." whispered Sasuke. Before anything was said on her part, the Haruno girl was struck in the neck in a way that knocked her out. Rather than falling to the ground in a heap she was placed on a nearby bench where she would remain until she regain consciousness

"We've been waiting for you." greeted Sakon. Both he and the other members of the Oto Four were a few miles away from Konoha as they saw the person that they were waiting for arrive. "Glad to see that you have decided to accept our proposal, Sasuke Uchiha."

"What's with the change of attitude?" inquired Sasuke in suspicion.

"By leaving the village you have become our leader. As it was decided earlier." explained Kidomaru. "Forgive us for the unpleasant first impression."

"I don't care about that. Let's just get going already." Following that order the now five member team took off into the night, with Oto being their destination.

**00000000**

"_Sometimes there are days when I regret taking this job."_ thought Tsunade to herself. Almost on a daily basis since becoming the Fifth Hokage she has been swamped with documents to sign, reading proposals or giving out assignments. It was getting to the point that she hardly had a moment to have some sake in peace, let alone go out and gamble. _"Maybe I should consider early retirement."_ Before that could actually be thought over, Shizune entered the office and seemed to have something important to say.

"Lady Tsunade, moments ago Sakura was found unconscious." That got th Hokage's attention as she cared about the girl in question. "She's okay but has informed us of a serious matter that needs to be taken care of at once."

Without even having heard what the pressing matter was, Tsunade knew that she wasn't going to like it. _"The idea of retirement is becoming more appealing by the moment."_

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Well, I hope that you guys like that. I know that there were similarities from what happened in the actual series but I hope it wasn't that big of a deal. There was of course moments that I altered and/or completely changed so it shouldn't be that much of a problem.

Also, you might have an idea what'll happen next and you won't be _completely_ wrong. What I mean, that'll do something different that would be a definite twist to this story. You'll just have to wait until the next chapter to find what that mean. Until then, see ya.


	50. Retrieval

Somewhat surprising but I decided to update again so soon after the one. I hope that the rush didn't make the chapter suffer. Disclaimer, I don't own Naruto.

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Chapter 50  
Retrieval

"Okay. That's the plan. Is there any questions?" asked Shikamaru. When none of the others said anything it confirmed that they knew what they needed to do. As they got everything they needed ready, Shikamaru couldn't help but think about the position he had been put into.

He had hardly been awake for hour when he was told that the Hokage wished to see him right away. When getting there he was told about Sasuke Uchiha's defection to Oto and that he was going to be in command of the team that was going to go get him.

The shadow user immediately asked for a team consisting of chunin and jonin but was denied since most were already out on missions or had to say in the village to protect in case of attack. As a result the team had to be comprised of mostly genin and Shikamaru had thirty minutes to fine the desired team members to do the retrieval mission. Simply put it was going to be very trouble.

First choice of team members was Naruto. While he may be a chunin his skills would prove useful. Also his lesser known ability may come in handy if needed. Besides, once hearing about Sasuke he would go after his wayward teammate whether he was told to or not.

The second pick was Choji. Being a regular teammate of Shikamaru he knew how the Nara boy worked and easiest to work with. Along with his strength will be something to use incase they happen to encounter some opposition that were real powerhouses.

Third member of the team just happen as Kiba, who was giving his animal partner Akamaru a morning walk when he manage to overheard about the mission. Not wanting to pass the opportunity to be part of such a thing he volunteered. Recognizing the tracking abilities of both Kiba and Akamaru the offer was accepted.

To complete the team, Shikamaru decided that the member should be a Hyuga member due to their increased eyesight from the Byakugan. The choice came down to either Neji or Hinata. While the female Hyuga would be a useful member of the team and her ability to use water base jutsus would add a new element it was decided to go the other way seeing as how his Byakugan was greater than her cousin.

With everyone having everything in check the five man team headed out. As they headed off in the destination of Oto they weren't sure what was ahead of them but were prepared to do everything they could to recover their deserting comrade. Whether they'll be able to actually do that was the question.

**00000000**

"Why have we stopped?" On the move since last night, Sasuke was surprised when they suddenly had to stop. He was also upset that they weren't still moving since he wanted to reach Oto as soon as possible.

"Patience you little shit." retorted Tayuya in her unique way. She clearly didn't care for the Uchiha and had no problem saying so. "Before we continue, there's something that you need to do."

"Now Tayuya, that's not the way that a lady is suppose to talk." Jirobo reprimanded. In response, the girl in question simply flipped him off. This was ignored since there have been similar incidents so it wasn't an uncommon occurrence.

"Let's get serious here. Orochimaru told us that there's one thing you need to do before we arrive at Oto" reminded Sakon to get back to the matter at hand. "Sasuke Uchiha, you have to die." The mentioning of that put the young Sharingan user on alert.

"What do you mean I have to die?" Sasuke had no idea what the four of them had planned but he wasn't planning on making it easy on them.

"Not an actual death. It'll only be once." That didn't really help clear things up. "First you'll need to take one of these." In Sakon's hand was a small bottle that had black pills inside. "By taking one it'll force your curse seal to evolve to the second state and unlock more of its power."

Being given a pill, Sasuke gave it a cautious look. How come I feel like there's more to this that you're telling me?" This whole situation didn't sit well with him.

"My, how perceptive you are. By having the mark going to the second state it'll considerably increase its corruption. If left unchecked it'll kill you." There weren't any snide remarks or posturing from any of the Oto Four which solidified the significance of the matter.

"That's why where here." enlightened Kidomaru. "While your body tries to adjust to the change I'll barrier jutsu will reduce the side effects of the progression. Therefore, your death will be only a temporary coma."

"Is your barrier skills really that reliable?" The concern of death had lessened a bit but there was a part of Sasuke who was still a little apprehensive about putting his life on the line with such a risk.

"Don't worry. Our ability in using barriers is superb." clarified Sakon. "We're the elite guard of Orochimaru so our skills are expected to be exceptional."

Looking at the pill in his hand, Sasuke he weighed the options. It wasn't until he had a flashback to what happen with his brother that he finally came to a decision. _"I can't die here. Whatever happens I can't die here."_ After taking one last claming breath he swallowed the pill.

The affects were instant as an intense pain went through Sasuke's entire body. Soon as that happens, the Oto Four got to work. Summoning a large barrel they put the Uchiha's seemingly lifeless body into it and put the lid on. Taking a position around it, the four Oto shinobi did a simultaneous jutsu that was used on the barrel. What followed were five paper seals that were placed to hold the lid in place.

"Well, phase one is completed." Once the task was done Jirobo positioned the barrel on his back. "Let's get going." Just like that, the Oto Four was on the move. This time though they were carrying their precious cargo. They didn't get far as they ran into two Konoha jonin who were returning from a mission. Wanting to be delayed them any further, all four decided to show what the second state of the curse seal was capable of.

**00000000**

"Come on. We've almost caught up to them." Having gone as fast and as safely as possible, the retrieval team led by Shikamaru was close in catching up with Sasuke and whoever was with. Thanks to the keen sense of smell of Kiba and Akamaru they already knew that there were four people who were traveling with Sasuke. They soon were not that far away but instead of getting any closer more surveillance was needed. "Neji, use your Byakugan to scout ahead, if you will."

Going ahead with the suggestion the Hyuga use his family's ability to see what was going on in front of them. "I see them. There are four of them, like Kiba said but I don't see Sasuke." That quickly put the other members of the team on alert. "Wait, there's something else there. I can't see what's inside of it."

"Sasuke has to be in there." Kiba proclaimed. "His scent hasn't separated from those four since I got a lock on them." To show support of his partner, Akamaru barked in agreement.

"I agree with Kiba." acknowledged Choji. "They try so hard to keep themselves from being notice that they wouldn't just kill him or let him get away."

"I think that we're all in agreement that Sasuke's in that barrel and mostly likely alive." voiced Shikamaru. "However, we need to think of a way to get him away from them without us getting killed." When ideas came, the shadow user sighed quietly. "Luckily I've got a plan that may very well do the trick without any of us getting hurt. All of you listen up. You listen in especially Naruto, since you play a key role in the plan."

**00000000**

"Damn it. We're wasting time resting." cursed Sakon. They had made quick work on the two jonins but there were drawbacks in how they did it. "We didn't have much time to spare to begin with and this isn't helping."

"Quit bitching. It can't be helped." Tayuya scolded. She didn't have the usual fiery behavior as she was exhausted as well. "We used too much strength by fighting in the second state."

"And because of it we won't be able to move our bodies like we want for quite a while." added Jirobo. He was so tried that he didn't even bother scolding Tayuya for her language.

"We didn't have much choice in the matter." Kidomaru insisted. "Against two jonins we would've been killed if we didn't use the second state." None of the other members hated to admit it there was truth to those words. Suddenly the six arm shinobi sensed something. Not saying a word he alerted his teammate about it and the direction that they were coming from.

Following the warning, Sakon threw a kunai with three paper bombs tied to them at a nearby tree. What followed was the bombs going off and drawing out both Shikamaru and Neji from hiding. "Well, well, well. Look what we got here. We happen to draw a couple of rats."

"Wait a minute. We're not here to fight." Shikamaru quickly informed. "We want to negotiate. That is all, nothing more." What the Nara said sounded sincere but no one was buying it.

"If that's true, what would you call this?" With a tug, Kidomaru pulled out three other members of the team who each were tied to one of his spider thread like string. "Don't even bother trying to free yourself from that string. They may be small but they're stronger than steel." What was said was the truth as none of them were able to remove the springs.

"Enough of this shit." proclaimed Tayuya. "Let's just kill them already and get going." Getting no argument the Oto shinobi were going to do so but suddenly stopped. "What the hell? My body can't move." Similar remarks were made by the others.

"It was success." announced Shikamaru. You were all caught by the Shadow Possession Jutsu." Looking down the Oto Four saw that their shadows were connected to the boy's. "Now, if you would be so kind, we'll be taking Sasuke Uchiha back. He is what you're carrying in that barrel isn't it?"

"Not so fast." Sakon turned down the request. "You're not the only one that has a special ability." Before it could be asked what that meant, a pair of shuriken went flying from a different direction than where the four Oto shinobi were and the projectiles were heading for the shadow user.

It looked as those the shurikens were going to hit Shikamaru but at the last second they were stopped when Neji deflected them with a kunai. That caused confusion as there was already someone there that looked like the Hyuga boy. To add to the strangeness,

To add to the confusion, a second Kiba and Choji appeared and were struggling with someone who looked identical to Sakon. "Look, at what we have here. It looks like we weren't the only ones who were thinking ahead." With a bit more struggling, Kiba and Choji were able to get the Sakon twin with his teammates and was quickly caught in Shikamaru's shadow possession.

"Okay Naruto. You can quiet the façade." Doing as the team leader said, all of the Konoha shinobi except for Shikamaru and the second Neji, Kiba and Choji changed into Naruto. That was followed by four more Narutos came out from the trees and joined the duplicates as they surrounded the Oto Four. "We'll be taking our comrade back."

Being cautious, Kiba made his way over and got the barrel. Not willing to take it laying down each of the Oto shinobi tried to get free from the shadow hold but were still too weak from using the second state of their curse seals to escape. "You don't think that you're actually going to get away with this do you?" asked Kidomaru who like his teammates were sieving from what was going on. "Soon as your shadow hold on us is gone we'll going to kill you all."

"Perhaps you're right." admitted Shikamaru. "However, I doubt you'll be able to do so." Not saying a word, all eight of the Narutos wrapped their arms around the Oto shinobi, with two holding each of them except one holding the two Sakons. Only when they had a firm hold on them did Shikamaru detached his shadow from theirs. After that the majority of the retrieval team left

"Let go of me you bastard." demanded Tayuya. She struggled to escape like the others but couldn't. "Hey, watch where you put your hands, you pervert." All she got was mumbling retorts from the blonds who held her down.

"_This is what we get for using our curse seals without thinking."_ As Sakon tried to free himself he got a good look at the blond. It suddenly came to him who he was. "It's you. You're the jinchuuriki for the nine-tailed fox."

"Close but not quite." Slowly a smile showed itself on the demon's host face. "If you happen to survive this send my regards to Orochimaru." His words became clearer as in concession all the Narutos blew up.

**00000000**

"The plan seems to have worked." stated Neji who used his Byakugan to be sure. He and the rest of the retrieval team were going as fast as they could back to the village. "No way to tell if any of them survived though."

"It doesn't matter now. We got what we came for." What Kiba was referring to was the barrel that contained Sasuke. They didn't try to open it due to the seals that were on it and they hadn't got any response from the Uchiha on the inside. "Too bad this isn't the only ting that needs to be carried." This time the comment was directed toward Choji and what he was carrying.

"Give it a break. He's exhausted." Draped over the Akimichi boy was Naruto who was passed out. "You would be to if you did what he done."

"Remember in his match with Neji in the Chunin Exam finals. He only used one exploding clone and he was nearly out on his feet." reminded Shikamaru. "Imagine doing four of them along with four shadow clones that had paper bombs on them to strengthen the blast. It's amazing that he was able to do all that before passing out from chakra exhaustion." A grunt of understanding from Kiba was heard and that was it. _"Of course it probably wouldn't have happen if he used the Kyuubi's chakra to help but it would likely have his secret revealed to the others."_

"Can you guys keep the noise down?" murmured Naruto who was pretty much still out of it. "I'm trying to get some sleep here." Unable to help themselves the four other members of the team laughed at that as they all made their back to the Konoha, having succeed in their mission.

**00000000**

"God fucking damn it!" yelled a still alive Tayuya. Unfortunately, she wasn't the only one as all the Oto shinobi were alive. If only barely. The destruction that was caused by the multi clone explosions was evident as there was a massive crater where it all happened. "When I get my hands on that blond haired little shit I'm going to kill him."

"For once I agree with Tayuya." approved Jirobo. His anger was similar to how the foulmouthed redhead was feeling.

"He's not the only one." repeated Kidomaru. "Those four teammates of his hand a hand in this. They should get the same thing as their friend."

"Who cares who deserves what." spoke up Sakon who was doing his best to contain the anger he was feeling. "Are you all right, Ukon?" The question was directed to the person that looked like him.

"As well as to be expected, brother." informed the now identified Ukon. "I need rest though." Understanding what his brother was talking about, Sakon went over and allowed Ukon to merge into his body. "Make sure that you save some of the revenge for me." Saying that, the unknown member of the Oto group began to rest behind her brother.

"We must get back Sasuke Uchiha and soon. If we don't we'll have to face Orochimaru's wrath." The mere mentioning of that made the others shiver as that was something that none of them wanted to experience. "We'll get him back and eliminate anyone that gets in our way."

**00000000**

Screams. Screams of intense pain were heard practically throughout entire building. The source of those screams was the leader of Oto and one of the legendary sannin, Orochimaru. "Ah, curse you Hiruzen Sarutobi!" Cursing out the name of the one responsible for his anguish did little to ease the pain that he was feeling throughout both of his arms and the lingering pain in his stomach due to the injury he got from the last fight. "Have they arrived yet?"

"I'm afraid not, Lord Orochimaru." informed Kabuto. It was only due to how valued he was that the medical specialist hadn't been killed like the others. "Perhaps you should consider switching bodies. The damage that the Third Hokage's jutsu did to you is getting worse." He was speaking the truth as both of the snake user's arms were seemingly dead as they were discolored and bleeding from various places. "You may even use my body if necessary."

"No! Only Sasuke will do." Orochimaru was dead set on that but another agonizing was heard coming out of his mouth.

"I implore you, my Lord. If nothing is done it may be too late." Silence was all that Kabuto got but knew that his concerns had gotten through. "I'll gather the potential candidates at once." Hurrying off, the former Konoha now Oto shinobi went to complete his task. _"Kimimaro may have to be sent to complete the mission."_

Kabuto's departure was even registered by Orochimaru as he continued to seethe over his anger. _"Soon I'll get my revenge over all those who have stood in my way."_ That thought were followed with images of his two former sannin members and a particular blond haired boy.

**00000000**

"We have returned and we are baring a gift." Kiba's somewhat feebly attempt of a joke was disregarded as the few shinobi there at Konoha's front gates as they hurried over to retrieve the barrel. Even the Fifth Hokage was there to investigate the situation.

"Well done. The five of you did an excellent job in completing your mission. You unquestionably showed how remarkable you are as shinobi." All the members of the team showed their appreciation of the Hokage's praise. Actually, four of the members did that while the fifth member, Naruto muttered something that couldn't be heard as he was still tired from doing his part in the retrieval plan. Although he was still suffering from chakra exhaustion, he was slowly regaining his strength thanks to how quick he was known to recover.

Getting back to the real reason why everyone was there, Tsunade gave the order to take the barrel so they could find a way to get Sasuke out of it. They wouldn't get far as a foul feeling started to be felt from the object. Or perhaps it was what was inside it that the feeling was coming from.

Suddenly the barrel exploded and in the middle of it was the person who had been inside it. Something seemed off about how the Uchiha looked but couldn't be sure due to the smoke. When things began to clear he appeared to be like how he usually was.

"Sasuke Uchiha, you mind explaining what happen o you?" requested Tsunade. Instead of giving an answer, the boy in question started laughing. "I'll ask again. Explain what you were doing with that shinobi team from Oto." This time her request was more of an order and she expected it to be followed. Again all she got was laughing that sounded maniacal.

As soon as the laughter started it ended only then did it seem like Sasuke notice where he was. Before anything could be said or done he tried to head for the front gates to escape. "Stop him. Don't let him get away." Right away most of the shinobi tried to get a hold of the Uchiha but he managed to avoid all the attempts. _"Maybe I should handle this myself."_ Already Tsunade had ideas on how to do that.

**00000000**

"_This is amazing. The power coursing through is unbelievable."_ Those thoughts and more went through Sasuke's head as he continued to evade the shinobi's efforts to capture him. If it wasn't for the fact that the ones there were likely just chunins and not that many the results would probably be different. _"And this is just how it is now. I can only imagine what kind of power I'll get from the mark once the seal to repress is removed."_

Sasuke's line of thinking was put on hold when he saw that the ones that were blocking his way of escape were the ones that he unknowingly brought him back. Shikamaru, Neji, Kiba and Choji were ready were ready to stop him while Naruto staggered over and was prepared to do what he could despite how weak he was.

"_Such fools. They are merely minor obstacles in my way in completing my quest."_ The power and revenge that was driving Sasuke had him ready to do whatever he needed to do to escape the village when he felt the presence of someone behind him. He didn't even have the opportunity to turn when he felt that person putting pressure on the back of his neck.

The result was instant as Sasuke has blacked out and would've collapsed if it wasn't for Tsunade grabbing him. "Don't worry. I just used a medical jutsu to slow the blood flow to his brain to make him lose consciousness." she explained to silence the concern that all those there were thinking. "He'll wake up in an hour or two. Before that happens though we need to restrain him and make sure that he doesn't have the opportunity to escape."

Complying with the Hokage's orders, the shinobi hurried over to the unmoving boy and took him to a secure plan that would keep him from getting away. As that went on, a troubled thought went through Tsunade's head. _"However, I think that we might be too late to what happen."_

* * *

There it readers. I hope you enjoyed it. Bet you didn't expect things to happen like they did in the chapter, did you? I wanted to do something different and this seem like a good way to do so. On how things move from here, you'll just have to wait and see. Until then, see ya.


	51. Diversion

As was stated in the previous chapter, I'm trying to move out the chapters faster than before. I hope that the momentum from the previous chapters continues on. Also, check out the author notes at the end. There's something important that involves the stories.

As for the disclaimer, I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Chapter 51  
Diversion

"This won't hold me." When Sasuke Uchiha regained consciousness he was chained securely to the ground that gave him only enough movement to get into a sitting position. Both his arms and legs were confined to the point that he could hardly move them. Basically, Sasuke wasn't enjoying the situation that he was in. "You can't hold me here."

"On the contrary, we can." disputed Tsunade right off. She and two ANBU Black Ops were in the room as they looked over at the captive boy. "After what you did you're lucky that you're getting this much leeway. You have your family name to thank for that." There was no jovial tone in the Hokage's voice as it was now all business. "You mind explaining what you were trying to accomplish by being with those Oto shinobi?"

"I thought that it was obvious." Sasuke remarked. "I was leaving this pathetic village to get something that I deserved." While he talked he tried to unleash his curse seal but couldn't. He couldn't even activate his Sharingan.

"If you're trying to use your chakra don't bother." stated Tsunade, already knowing what Sasuke was trying. "Those chains are made of a material that absorbs the chakra of whoever is bound to them. The more you struggle the more the chains absorbs. To be on the safe side a seal was put on your curse seal that'll suppress it. It should hold until either Jiraiya returns to do a more proper seal." Seeing that she wasn't going to get any answers she and the ANBU left the confined Uchiha to stew.

When arriving at the Hokage tower Tsunade sent the two ANBU back to their posts. She got into her office and sat down in her chair to get back to work. It seemed to be the only one there but that wasn't the case. "Enjoying the view out there? Had to since you must've been out there for quite a while."

For a moment it seemed like Tsunade may of talking to no one until someone did speak up. "That was pretty good." Appearing at one of the windowsills was Naruto or to be more precise, his other persona, Fox. "I guess your skills haven't diminished that much despite your age." Luckily for the him was spared a beating from the woman in question for his age remark.

"You know you could've just come in the normal way instead of using the window. Also, you didn't have to show up like that." the sannin was referring to the form that her visitor was in.

Casually taking a seat the demon host shrugged his shoulders. "What's the problem? I haven't been Fox for a while and my body recovers quicker in this form. Besides, most of the people in this village still don't trust Fox so I rather use the window than the door." Dropping the topic the two got to business. "Did he tell you anything?"

"Not anything that we didn't already know." Tsunade regrettably informed. "I fear that he won't be telling us anything unless we let Ibiki use his method of question but I would prefer not doing that." They were in agreement on that as the jonin's way of getting people to talk wasn't enjoyable. "Are you sure you told us everything you know?"

"Everything that happen is in the mission report that you were given. However, I can't confirm it but I think there's a chance that the group that was accompanying Sasuke is still alive. Probably battered but alive and probably pissed off after what the team and I did." The memories that he got from his clones before they were destroyed were proof of that. "If they are alive there's a chance they'll comeback try to get Sasuke back."

Silently, Tsunade had to agree with that likelihood. "That probably is the case and regrettably this couldn't be a worse time for it to happen. With most of the jonin and chunin out on missions there's a chance of them sneaking into the village again. Plus, we don't have any real information about those individuals except for what your team happen to witness. Maybe if we had more information about them would help things."

"Good luck at that." Fox halfheartedly voiced. "Where are you going to find someone who can help you there?"

Suddenly a knowing smile came across Tsunade's face. "I may know of the one that may help us with that problem."

**00000000**

"My, this is a surprise." In an interrogation room, Kin Tsuchi was sitting in a chair, securely chained but couldn't help but smile. "I wasn't expecting you this soon. You must be somewhat desperate if you're come to me so soon after our last discussion."

"Are you in any position to be talking in such a way?" stated Tsunade in an authoritative way. Kin merely shrugged her shoulders in indifference. _"She respects authority as much as Naruto does."_ Realizing that this way wasn't going to work she decided to take a different approach.

"You said that you wanted to join Konoha. Helping us with this could really help that happen." That seemed to get through the girl as she didn't do any sarcastic reply. "We had some Oto shinobi sneak into the village and may try to do it again. We're hoping that you could give us a little insight to who they might be."

Hesitating for only a moment, Kin took the paper that listed what the people looked like and what abilities that were seen. "Are you sure that all of this is accurate?" Getting a nod of confirmation made the look that was already on Kin's face grimmer. "Then your concern is valid. I know who these people are and trust me; if they want in they'll find a way."

**00000000**

"Does everyone remember the plan?" Hidden on the outskirts of Konoha, the Oto Four who were about to sneak into the village again. Before doing so it was decided to clarify a few things. "Make sure none of you get sidetracked by anything."

"We know that already shit head." retorted a more annoyed than usual Tayuya. "All of us know what we're supposed to do. But if I happen to find any of the fucks that got in our way I'm going to kill them." Silently all of them agreed with that statement.

"You want revenge, fine but remember that our main objective comes first. That is of course you wish to explain to Orochimaru why we failed for a second time." Grudgingly they knew that was the truth as their leader wouldn't hesitate in killing any of them if need be. "Let us begin." Saying nothing more the Oto team went in separate directions to perform their respected part of the plan. There wasn't any room for failure because if they did death would certainly be their future.

**00000000**

"Man, I'm bored." voiced a Konoha chunin.

"Enough already." said another chunin. The two of them were stationed at one of the watch towers that were stationed on the wall that helped protect Konoha. Of course, they were assigned to be on sentry duty but it didn't mean that they enjoyed it. "Complaining about it won't change anything. Just do what we were assigned to do."

"But this is so boring. Instead of going on a mission I'm here on guard duty. I get why this is important but it's unlikely that anyone will actually try to attack the village. You got to be crazy even trying." Suddenly, the sound of some musical instrument being played could be heard. Before he could asked what it actually was the shinobi started feeling something weird about his arms. Looking down he saw that the skin on both of his arms were melting away to where there was nothing left but the bone.

The chunin screamed at what he was seeing and was about to shout over to his comrade but saw that he was seemingly experiencing the same thing as him. Throughout all of this, that musical sound continued to be heard. Soon both of the chunin started to scream but they wouldn't last long. Moments later the two chunin were on the ground dead and that their arms that they thought to be melting away were actually okay.

Along with their dead bodies was Tayuya and she was revealed to be the one who was playing the music from a flute. When she stopped playing she looked at her victims in disgust. _"Pathetic. They were dealt with too easily."_ With what she need to do being done she left the watch tower. _"For his sake that idiot better do his part."_

**00000000**

"Did you here a flute playing a moment ago?"

"You must be hearing things because I didn't hear anything." informed the other person in the watch tower, a female chunin. "Relax. No need to be so tense. Everyone's been on edge since Konoha was attacked during the Chunin Exam finals."

"I just thought that it came from the nearby tower. Maybe you're right. I should take it easy." Looking over to his female companion he smiled while checking her out. "Hey, how about when our shift is over we go out and have a drink together?"

Smiling at the offer, the woman was about to give an answer when she felt something bite her on the leg. Glancing down she saw that the bite was from a spider. Cursing silently she flicked it away. "I hate. They give me the creeps."

"If that's the case, you're not going to like this." What was meant by that was that coming their way was a large group of spiders. It wasn't long until the insects had completely envelope the two shinobi who struggled to free themselves. Their attempts wouldn't last long as bit by bit they were overwhelmed and the fell to the ground. When the spiders moved away both shinobi was determined to be dead.

"That was easy." proclaimed Kidomaru, the four armed shinobi from Oto. "Maybe I went a bit too far with using so many of my spiders to inject their venom into these two fools." Thinking it over for a bit he shrugged it off.

"Oh well. This takes care of two possible obstacles later on. Better hurry up and finish my job or I'll likely to get hell from Tayuya." Having no other need to be there he exited from there. One by one, the people in the other watch towers were taken care of by Kidomaru and Tayuya. With part completed it allowed the other members of their team to carry out the next part of their plan.

**00000000**

"We're under attack." The attack came unexpected as a large boulder came crashing through one of Konoha's security walls. What the caused for it was Jirobo but there was something different about him. Throughout most of his body were jagged triangle shaped patterns that focused on where his curse seal was.

The few shinobi there fought to defend the village but much like the ones who tried to stop the Oto Four when they had taken Sasuke, they couldn't beat him and could only keep him back for the time being. They weren't even able to get in close or get a good shot in because Jirobo would do some earth jutsu to protect him.

"This isn't working." declared one of the shinobi who was in charge of the protecting. "Inform the Hokage that additional support is requested. Also, tell her to be on the lookout for this guy's teammates." Nodding in understanding the person that he had been talking to left to give the information that was told. _"We'll hold this guy until more help arrives."_

**00000000**

"So they did comeback." From her office, Tsunade thought over everything that had been reported to her. With the attack that was going on with one of the enemies and the lack of response from those at the watchtowers, indicating that those people had been killed, made the situation serious.

"I'm afraid so, Lady Hokage." acknowledged Shizune. "So far we have several reported injured people and a few fatalities." She knew this herself as she had assisted in treating some of the wounded that were brought in. She had left to report the information that had been received and left Sakura to help take care of the wounded. "We have yet to locate any of the other members of the attackers but it can be presumed that they're somewhere in the area. How should we handle this Tsunade?"

There was nothing from the Fifth Hokage as she tried to think of a situation. _"Don't have much to work with. Since most of the shinobi still haven't returned and the ones that are here are either busy dealing with the current attack or possibly already killed. I guess there isn't any other choice."_ "Shizune, get Shikamaru over here immediately. I have something that his recent team needs to take care of."

**00000000**

"_Something is going on out there."_ From his holding cell Sasuke could hear the chaos that was going on outside. Although he wasn't able to see what was happening he had a good idea what it was. He struggled to get free but his restraints would budge. _"Damn it. If it wasn't for these damn restraints I could use the confusion to escape. Can I get a break here?"_

Suddenly the door to his cell opened and a chunin walked in. There something was off about him though as he had a look of straining on his face. The strangeness continued as emerging from the chunin was what appeared to be Sakon. When almost separate, the ligh blue haired boy looked at the chunin who tried to move but couldn't.

"Thank you for your assistance. I couldn't have gotten in here without your help." As he spoke he reached into the chunin's weapon pouch and pulled out a kunai. "However, your services are no longer required." With that he used the kunai to cut the chunin's throat open and let the man fall to the ground as he completely separated from his host.

"Ah, it feels good to be out of that body. I was starting to feel cramped in there." Stretching for a moment the Sakon looking boy went over to the bound Sasuke who was obviously confused about what had just happen. "What? Cat caught your tongue?"

"How the hell did you do that, Sakon?" Sasuke finally managed to ask after getting over the shock. Looking back and forth from the light blue haired boy and the now dead chunin he wasn't able to figure what he just witnessed.

"I'm not Sakon. I'm his brother Ukon. All I did was borrowed the man's body to sneak in here to get you out." That explanation did little to clear the confusion that the Uchiha had. "There's no time for explaining. You got only so much time until someone decides to show up and make sure that you're still here." Making quick work, Ukon removed all of the restraints that held Sasuke.

"My brother is waiting outside. The three of us need to be out of the village before anyone is the wiser." Comprehending that what was been said was true, Sasuke followed his unexpected liberator as they hurried out of the prison. They were on their way but stopped when Ukon saw something. "Isn't this a surprise? I didn't expect I'd see you again." Who he was referring to was former Oto shinobi Kin Tsuchi who was in one of the other holding cells.

Not really reacting to her surprised visitor, Kin merely looked at the boy with an impassive expression. "Well, if it isn't Ukon. Or is it Sakon? I never could tell you two apart. Seeing as how you two were always so…close with one another." Her remark didn't go unnoticed by the light blue haired boy as he sneered at the girl. She glanced to the side and saw the person who was with him. "Ah, so you and the others were doing all of this to get Konoha's recent traitor. Lot a work for someone isn't really worth it."

Again Kin's words did the trick as the Uchiha didn't take to kindly to what had been said. He was about to respond in a physical manner but was stopped by Ukon. "That's saying something. After all, you've been locked up here since the invasion. Curious though, how much information have you given them? Enough so they would keep you alive?" Silence was all that was given but it was even to confirm Ukon's suspicions.

What happen next was a surprise as the Oto shinobi went over and unlocked the girl's cell. "If you want to escape then go ahead. Not like you have much reason to stay here except being this village's pathetic underling. Although it wouldn't be far from how you were when you served Lord Orochimaru." Laughing Ukon started to leave again with Sasuke Uchiha not far behind. Had either of them took a moment to look back they may of seen that Kin was clinching her fists tightly to contain her anger but the look on her face it seemed as though she was unsure about what she wanted to do.

**00000000**

"You got to be kidding me. We busted our asses to get that guy and you're saying that there's a chance we may have to do it again?" Kiba's little outburst was somewhat shared by the others as it felt as though it was getting repetitive.

"Looks like it." stated Shikamaru. "Those guys came here for Sasuke once so it possible they're trying to do the same thing again. Have to be sure though. Know anything yet?"

"Give it time. We'll know soon." complained Naruto. The team was a few rooftops away from where Sasuke was suppose to be held and were waiting to find out if he was still there or not. How they were going to know is by having a Naruto shadow clone go in and see. Once it disappeared the original would know whatever the clone found out. "He's gone." Naruto informed after receiving the information from his clone. "No one is in the cell except for a dead chunin. Can't tell though if the bastard left without anyone or not."

"So this was a plan to give Sasuke the chance to escape." Choji surmised which was shared by the other members of the team. "But there's no telling how long since he escaped and where he could've went. Where do we even start looking?"

Instead of giving an answer verbally, Shikamaru looked over to another member of the team, Neji Hyuga. Understanding what was being asked the boy activated his Byakugan and used it to search for intended target. Using his bloodline limit to its full extent Neji looked all about the area. Nothing was being found but it seemed like he was getting close.

"Found him. Wait a minute. I've located five people who are similar to Sasuke's chakra signature." The confusion was evident in the Hyuga's voice with the feeling being shared by the others. "I'm unable to tell which one is the real one." Annoyance was also detected by the boy as Byakugan wasn't able to differentiate which signature was from the real Sasuke.

"They must've somehow mimic their chakra to Sasuke's so it would be impossible to tell which one is the real one." surmised Shikamaru. He quickly tried to come up with some kind of plan to deal with this situation and so far the only reasonable idea that he could come up with wasn't a favorable one. _"Don't really have much a choice. This goes beyond troublesome."_ "Listen up guys. Only way we can do this is by splitting up and each of us going after one of the potential Sasuke's."

"You sure that's a good idea?" asked Naruto. He wasn't the only one that had issues with the suggested 'plan' but was the first to voice them. "To better the odds I could make a couple shadow clones that could go with each of us."

"No." Neji quickly decline the suggestion. "Doing that would tire you out and that would make you an easier target if you were to fight." Nothing was said from Shikamaru as he agreed with what had been said. "We have no other choice but to go with Shikamaru's plan. If nothing is done there's a chance of Sasuke escaping the village." Realizing that there was no other choice everyone in the team decided to go with the so-called plan.

Getting the location of all of the chakra signatures, each of the reformed retrieval team headed off to stop them or if need be eliminate them. Neji, Kiba and Choji had already left to go after their assigned targets but Naruto and Shikamaru had yet to move from where they stood.

"What do you think our chances of actually being successful in this mission? Let alone all of us getting through this in one piece?" questioned Naruto. There wasn't any attempt of being funny as he was being completely serious with his asking.

"Don't ask." responded Shikamaru who didn't sound all that optimistic. "We don't know everything that these people are capable of and if they're the same ones that we deal with before they'll surely want to get retribution for what did."

"Basically you're saying that the odds are like the ones that I've been having lately?" That was referring to the recent amount of times that Naruto went up against someone who would more likely want him dead if nothing else. The somewhat joke seemed to at least help to get Shikamaru to relax a bit. "Hey, we'll roll with the punches and hope that we don't get knocked out." Saying nothing more the two newly promoted chunin took off to do their part of the mission.

**00000000**

What had been failed to be noticed by the retrieval team was that there was another holding cell that wasn't looked. It wasn't until Naruto's shadow cone had disappeared did they slowly start to open their cell door. When it became clear that no one else was there, Kin Tsuchi completely step out into the open.

"I guess the Oto Four are really causing problems out there if no one has come around here." Walking in the direction that Ukon and Sasuke had come from, Kin soon found the body of the chunin that was killed. Feeling somewhat bad about it she went to the body and started to search to see if he had anything on him that could be useful.

She got lucky as the chunin had a good assortment of weapons, including senbon needles and wire. "It's time to do what needs to be done." Leaving the cell and the prison entirely, Kin went off to do when she need to do. Quite honestly, she honestly wasn't sure what that was.

**00000000**

"Come on. Is this the best that you can do?" Unable to help himself, Jirobo was finding amusement as he continued to fight the Konoha shinobi that were trying to come at him. Most of them had tried to attack from a distance but all their attempts were blocked and for those who attempted to come in closer were quickly dealt with. _"I guess I've done enough of a distraction so that the others can complete what they needed to do. Guess it's time for me to get going."_

"Human Bullet Tank." Suddenly a large green sphere appeared and would've crush Jirobo if he hadn't quickly backed away. When the smoke cleared the sphere shrunk and was revealed to be Choji Akimichi. _"My surprise attack didn't work. By the looks of it Sasuke didn't come this way."_

"Ah, it's you." Voiced Jirobo as he recognized who came at him. "You're one of the people who interfered with us earlier. Wasn't sure that I would run into any of you but I'm glad to see that I'm getting the chance." Stopping for a moment he glanced at something before smiling slightly. "Before that though, we should make sure that we have any interruption."

Activating his curse seal he did next was something that caught everyone there by surprise. Reaching over he grabbed a huge broken piece of the wall and pressed it over his head like it weighed nothing. Choji thought that it was going to be used on him but when he saw Jirobo looking pass him he understood what he was thinking about doing.

Turning around he shouted to the Konoha shinobi that were not that far away. "Everyone get out of the way." Just as those words left his mouth, Jirobo threw the large piece of rock at the other people who were there. The damage that came from it was some of the shinobi being killed and those who weren't were severely injured. Basically, none of them would be getting involved anytime soon, if at all.

"_What power. No way can I go against him while he's using that curse seal."_ Tentatively he started to reach for something in his pocket. _"I never wanted to use these unless it was an emergency. I guess that time is now."_ Going into his pocket Choji pulled out a small case that had three pills that were green, yellow and red. Opening it he put the green pill into his mouth and swallowed it. The affects were immediate as a burst of chakra flowed through his body

Not wanting to waste this newfound strength he used the partial multi-size jutsu to enlarge his arms and used one to back fist Jirobo into the wall and used the other to drive him harder into the wall. "Just so you know I'm now twice as strong as I was before."

"Is that a fact?" inquired Jirobo with any concern. "That's a shame then." With that his curse seal changed again only this time is covered the user's entire body. Before the results of it could be seen the Oto shinobi brushed away Choji's enlarged arms and knocked him as though he was nothing. "Because in my second state I'm now ten times as strong then I was before. However, you won't be around long to know that." Along with the new strength Jirobo's appearance had change. His skin had become reddish-brown, the bit of hair that he had grew to that it reached pass his shoulders and a few ridges appeared on his forehead. The new look didn't hide the fact that Jirobo had indeed gotten stronger.

Registering this, Choji tried to not show that his body was in pain and it wasn't due to the earlier brush off. _"I knew that that the green pill would cause some pain but I didn't think it would be this bad."_ Going through the pain he got two long pieces of string that had several kunais tied to them and wrapped them around him. He opened the case again he swallowed the yellow pill.

Like with the previous one it gave Choji a boost of chakra only stronger. Expanding his entire body he was going to do another Human Bullet Tank only this time the tied kunais were sticking out throughout his body. Rolling forward Choji came even faster and was able to have some of the kunais to cut up various parts of Jirobo's body.

The attack would be a momentary success as the second stated Jirobo stopped Choji's forward momentum and was even able to lift the enlarged boy over his head. "Is this the best that you can do?" Without any real effort he threw his opponent away. When Choji landed he shrunk back to his normal size. "If so then this'll be over soon."

**00000000**

"Not bad. You avoided three out of my five thread shots." complimented Kidomaru. What he meant was that after Neji found him somewhat away from Konoha the two of them fought. It got to the point that the Hyuga was ensnared by some of the six armed Oto shinobi's thread. "Unfortunately for you, I'm going to go ahead and end this before it starts to become boring."

Again Kidomaru produced more thread only it was the stronger version of it to create a clever. Seemed liked things were about to be end when suddenly the webbing that was holding Neji broke away from him and avoid the incoming attack. Going on the offensive he rushed in and did a Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms with the strike ending with Kidomaru being knocked a few feet away.

Neji waited to see it his attack did the trick and would soon get his answer when he saw Kidomaru get back to his feet without much trouble. _"What is this? I know that I hit all of his chakra points so he shouldn't be able to be moving."_

"My, you're just full of surprises, aren't you?" It would become clear how Kidomaru was able to withstand the attack as covering his body was layer of the super strength spider thread to create a type of armor. That same armor would start to come apart and would reveal that the Oto shinobi had activated his curse seal. "Seems as though Lord Orochimaru wasn't lying when he told us about how tough you Hyugas are. Guess you're going to be more entertaining than I thought."

Standing on a tall tree branch Kidomaru bit one of his fingers and started to do a series of hand signs. At the same time his lower hands created a spider web. "Summoning Jutsu." Slamming his hand on the thread the jutsu was completed and resulted in multiple spiders to appear. The spiders surrounded Neji but before they could do anything he used the Heavenly Spin that destroyed all the spiders.

"_So this is how a Hyuga fights."_ thought Kidomaru as he watched what was happening. _"With that Byakugan he can see anything around him."_ To seemingly confirm that claim, a kunai was thrown at his direction which was barely avoided. Quickly he hid himself which trying to formulate a plan. _"I never thought that this game would be this amusing or I would be going into the second state."_

The new state was apparent as now the six armed shinobi's skin had become a deep red; his hair was longer and horns appeared on his forehead and elbows. But the most noticeable difference was that a third eye appeared on his forehead. Along with the change was the increase of power.

Putting his plan into action he created more of his super strength spider thread and used it to form a large bow. Using more of that same type of thread he made an arrow. _"Better stay a safe distance away and finish him off."_

With his third eye, Kidomaru focus his sight on Neji who was using his Byakugan to find his opponent. _"Accuracy rate: sixty percent."_ Letting it go the arrow was launch toward the seemingly unexpected Hyuga.

**00000000**

"Yeah boy, I know." Kiba murmured to Akamaru who was alerting his partner to what his nose picked up. They were following assigned target and so far it led them to the outskirts of the village. So far the search hadn't really turned up anything.

Already both of them knew that Sasuke wasn't around but figured that maybe whoever they were tracking would shed some light on where he was. They wouldn't have to look any longer as a kunai came at them and while it miss, didn't mean that the paper bombs that were attached did. Although both human and animal escaped the majority of the explosion, it still got them a little which cause them to be knocked into some trees.

"Damn. I miss." On a branch of a nearby tree was the person that Kiba and Akamaru had been tracking. By the looks of it, Sakon hadn't appreciated it one bit and to help express his anger his curse seal had activated and the markings that came from it presented themselves over his face. "At least you didn't get away from it completely uninjured. It serves you right for trying to follow me."

What Sakon said was true as there was a trail of blood going down from the gash on the side of Kiba's head. Akamaru was in better condition than he was but that wasn't saying much as he had cuts and bruises here and there. Despite the pain they had to be in, both of them got to their feet. "You're one to talk. Are you too much of a coward that you have to hide to attack them?"

Of course that got a reaction as the Oto shinobi had a scowl on his face and if possible, the curse seal markings seem to pulsate. Before either side could do anything, another kunai was thrown at Kiba only this time coming from the side. Like last time the weapon missed and luckily this one didn't have paper bombs attached to it. _"What the hell? Who threw that?"_ Kiba tried to sniff out who else could be there but that wasn't helping. _"This doesn't make any sense. I don't smell anyone else but the three of us here. Oddly though, there seems to be more than one thing that smells like this guy. How is that possible?"_

Understanding that taking the offensive was the best course of action to take; Kiba gave Akamaru a food pill and had him turn into an identical version of his partner. "Fang over Fang." Becoming dual spinning drills the two of them went after Sakon but they would only able to tear up the tree that said person had been standing on. Continuing with their attack they continued to go after their opponent this time coming after him from two sides.

"_This is it. There's no way that he'll be able to block both attacks."_ Kiba's self assumption too soon as both his and Akamaru's dual attack were stopped by four hands. _"What in the world? This can't be." _His confusion would be cleared up when someone spoke up and it wasn't Sakon.

"That was a close, brother." acknowledged a person who was actually connected with what they thought to be their only opponent. The object that was on Sakon's back lifted up and was revealed to be an identical Sakon, including having a similar curse seal being used, except his hair was covering the opposite eye. "Fortunately I reunited with you in time."

"Appreciate the help, brother. I must've let my guard down too much for them. Don't plan to make the same mistake twice." He followed that by knocking Kiba away while his brother did likewise with the current humanize Akamaru. What happen next was Sakon's curse seal going into the next state. The change that he underwent was apparent as his skin became a reddish-brown, hair grew longer and his eyes became yellow. Also his chin became pointer; a horn appeared on the left side of his forehead and his teeth became like fangs.

"I see where you're going Sakon and I agree." Copying his brother's actions he changed also. He shared a similar appearance to him as well except that the horn appeared on the right side of his forehead. "Let us put an end to this."

Silently agreeing, the two brothers went at their adversaries and working in tandem they had the advantage against them. _"This is insane."_ Kiba acknowledged to himself while defending against one of the brothers. _"It's almost as though we're fighting two people who understands what the other is capable of. Add the increase of power along with the transformation it's seemingly impossible of fighting against."_ He didn't even have to ask to know that Akamaru was thinking along that same line.

Showing even more of the teamwork that they seem to have the Oto shinobis briefly rejoined to make one body and each used one of their legs to give Kiba a double kick. Continuing their assault they followed it by giving dual punches to Akamaru which had enough force behind it that it made the animal familiar to change back into his actual form.

"What's the matter? Having trouble keeping up?" inquired Sakon even though he already knew the answer. "You can thank my bloodline limit for that. It allows me and my brother to share one body and have each other's limbs to position themselves elsewhere." This was shown when one of Ukon's hands came out of Sakon's chest for a moment before going back in. "There's another advantage to it but that'll be saved for later. Unless of course, if you're not already dead by then."

* * *

I know that while things are different here and there concerning the fights they're still somewhat like how they were in the actual series. I apologize for that. Doing fighting scenes isn't my strongpoint and I'm doing at least four of them at the same time so it's somewhat difficult to make them completely original. Hopefully it won't be a serious problem.

Now, as for the imporatnt matter that I alluded to earlier, I wanted to say that this story is coming to an end. That doesn't mean that the series is over. What I mean is that as it stands now, this story is going to be split up into seperate stories/arcs. This one will be over after the next two chapters and will wrap up the stuff that revolves around Part 1 of the actual series. I'll explain it more later on.

Until then, see ya.


	52. Assistance

I'll make the author notes short. Second to last chapter to this particular arc of my story is coming to an end. Hope you like it. Disclaimer, I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Chapter 52  
Assistance

"_Troublesome. This is absolutely troublesome."_ That thought went through Shikamaru's head as he hid from his opposition's attacks. He tried to come up some sort of strategy but was having trouble concentrating as the person he was up against was continuously making a racket

"Come out. Quit being a pussy and fight me." Out in the open was the sole female member of the Oto Four, Tayuya. She hated that the person she happen to run into had hid more than actual fighting and was putting a strain on her already short temper. "Why don't you grow a pair and actually start fighting?" Her anger had gotten to the point that she was already in the first state of her curse seal.

Remaining hidden, Shikamaru continued to strategies. _"Pay no attention to her. All she's trying to do is lure me out into the open. Think of a way to defeat her while I've got the chance."_ Putting his brain into overdrive the young chunin thought of a plan that would allow him to come out of this as victor. When one did come he put everything in order before putting the plan it into action.

"This is getting old pretty quick. Are you going to show yourself or not?" When no answer was given just angered Tayuya even more. _"I guess he's leaving me with no choice but to summon the Doki."_ She was about to do so when a kunai was the shadow user suddenly appeared and threw a kunai at her. It wouldn't hit as the ill-tempered girl moved out of the way. "Ha, you missed me."

"Who said I was trying to hit you?" Again Shikamaru threw a kunai, this time higher as it cut a wire that had been holding a circular object. What that was would soon be realized as it exploded in a flash of light.

"_Damn it, a flash bomb. He's going to use it to-"_ Tayuya's thought was left unfinished as just as she predicted, Shikamaru used the extra shadows that the flash created to stretch his own and connect it with hers.

"Shadow Possession Jutsu is complete." Walking cautiously over, the young chunin strengthen his shadow hold on the opposing shinobi. "Now, are you going to tell me where the real Sasuke Uchiha went?" A string of curses was all that was given as an answer. "Then I guess that leaves me with no other choice. Shadow Strangle Jutsu."

Unlike his previous jutsu, this one took the form of a hand and started to make its way up Tayuya's body until it reached her neck. _"What is this? It's like there's an actual hand on my neck."_ Try as she might she couldn't free herself from the shadow hold that she was in. _"Who would've thought it? Hard to believe that a piece of shit like this would force me to work this hard in a fight."_

What Tayuya meant was having her curse seal go into the second state. Her skin was now a dark brown, her eyes turned black with yellow pupils and her hair was now even longer. Perhaps the thing that really stood out about her after the change was the five oddly-placed horns that were on her head.

Like the other Oto team members the change resulted in increased strength which she used to stop the shadow hand from strangling her. _"What's going on? Her chakra has increased tenfold since she's transformed."_ Try as he might, Shikamaru was having trouble with keeping his jutsu from being broken. _"Is this what it's like when Naruto becomes Fox?"_ Continuing to struggle with his jutsu, the shadow user couldn't help but hope that he could hold on long enough so he could come up with a plan.

**00000000**

"That is everything that is known at this moment." At the Hokage Tower, Tsunade was informing some individuals about the situation that had been going on in Konoha. "Is there any questions?" Nothing was asked. "I again want to thank you for assisting us in this time of need. Please hurry and help those who need it."

Giving unison nods of understanding the individuals left, leaving the Fifth Hokage alone in her office. _"This is a big pile of mess that this village is in. What I wouldn't do for a bottle of sake right now."_ For a moment Tsunade thought about going into her private stash but thought better. _"You're probably enjoying this wherever you are, Orochimaru. No matter what this village will do all it can to make sure that you don't get what you want."_

**00000000**

"_**You know, don't you?"**_ Kyuubi's question was unanswered as his host kept moving. _**"You know that you're heading for the real Sasuke? He surely won't come back willingly."**_

"_I know that."_ Naruto finally answered. _"Doesn't matter what he wants. He's coming back to the village, even if I have to bring him back by force."_

"_**And if you can't?"**_ Again there wasn't any immediate answer to the fox's question. _**"You know that the Uchiha left on his own free will. Add the curse seal that he's sure to be not right in the head."**_ No reply came from Naruto but the demon fox knew he agreed to what was said. _**"What if you can't get him to come back with you? What'll you do then?"**_

That was a question that Naruto asked himself more than once. _"Sasuke Uchiha will not be allowed to abandon Konoha to join Orochimaru. One way or another I'll make sure that doesn't happen."_ More than once Naruto told himself that. He only hoped that if the time came he'll be able to do what he said.

So focus on trying to reassure himself that he would follow through with his words that he almost failed to notice when something came flying at him. Moving out of harm's way he looked at what was thrown at him and recognized what it was. "Oh no. Not you. Not now." Looking around, Naruto saw no one. "You may as well come out. I know that you're out there, Kimimaro."

"Very impressive, Naruto Uzumaki." Appearing on towering tree branch was the person that the boy suspected. "It would seem as though your sensory abilities hasn't wavered whatsoever since we last met." Sticking his arm out, Kimimaro allowed a long sword made of bone to pop out of his arm and was grabbed in his hand. "Wonder how much you've improved since our last encounter."

"_Don't have time for this."_ While he knew that, Naruto also knew that there wasn't any way for him to get pass the bone user without a fight. So without any other choice, he prepared to go with his only opinion. "You want to fight me? So be it. Shadow Clone Jutsu." Appearing alongside Naruto was four clones. "If you don't mind, I'm going to try and end this quick. I have more important things to do."

"Yes. To retrieve Sasuke Uchiha I believe." Kimimaro deduced. "I'm here to make sure that you and no one else gets in the way of him meeting up with Lord Orochimaru." Nothing else was said between the two as bone user dropped from the tree and to the ground. When he landed, Naruto and his clones went at him.

Much like the time when they fought those free months ago, it was the blond haired demon host trying to strike the Oto shinobi but his attempts were being either blocked or avoided like they were nothing. As that went on, Kimimaro would destroy the clones one at a time until only the real Naruto remained.

"I'm disappointed, Uzumaki. I would've thought that you've improved somewhat since our last encounter." Gripping his weapon he positioned himself to strike again. "From what respect I have left in your abilities I'll end this now before you become truly disappointing."

Following through with his words, Kimimaro rushed in and thrust his sword straight for Naruto. Right before his head was pierced the spiky haired demon host ducked it and spun to his opponent's side. Quickly Naruto tried to stab something into Kimimaro's side but the Oto shinobi didn't worry about it as there's was no chance of it actually doing anything.

How wrong he was as a stabbing pain was felt in the spot that the blond aimed for. "B-But how did he-" Looking to his side Kimimaro got his answer as he saw that sticking out of him wasn't a kunai but a familiar weapon as it was the dagger that was made from his bone that he had used earlier. "So that's how you did it."

"Yeah it was." Naruto clarified. "You said before that you can make your bones harder than steel and I thought that you would do such a thing with what you threw at me. So, while you were distracted by my clones I grabbed it and waiting until the opportunity presented itself to use it. Apparently I improved after all." The smile on his face from his accomplishment was evident.

Despite the wound that he received, Kimimaro didn't seem to have that much of a problem with it. "Clever." With a tug he pulled out the bone dagger from his side and pressed a hand on his wound. "Perhaps you're indeed worth all the attention that Lord Orochimaru has given you." Removing his hand from the wound it was revealed that it had healed.

"_Shit. He heals as quickly as I do. May have to become Fox to beat him but I don't have time to waste fighting him."_ Recognizing that there wasn't really any other choice he was going to become his other self when someone appeared the two adversaries. "What are you doing here? Not that I'm complaining."

"I saw and heard everything that has been going on." informed the new arrival. "I couldn't standby and do nothing when others were working so hard. Besides, I couldn't avoid the chance in having an amazing fight."

In spite of the situation, Naruto couldn't help but chuckle about what was said. "Why am I not surprise? Shouldn't be all that of a shock to hear that from you, Lee." Indeed, the one who showed up was taijutsu specialist, Rock Lee. "Sure you're up to it? After all, it wasn't long ago that you had major surgery. Can you're body handle the stress?"

"I'm sure that I'll be fine. We shinobi of Konoha are willing to personal pain aside to complete what is needed to be done." Seem as though Lee was confident in what he said. "Anyway, wasn't your mission to get to Sasuke before he gets away? Surely you'll be able to catch up to him if you hurry."

Being reminded of what he originally was there to do; Naruto was ready to head out again. "Be careful with this guy. He's able to use his bones as weapons." Shock on hearing was evident from Lee. "Don't let your guard down against him at all. If you do then it may be your last."

Getting confirmation that what he said got through Naruto took off. Not allowing this to happen, Kimimaro tried to stop him but was stopped Lee got in his way. "Where do you think you're going? I'm your opponent now." Lee even went into a fighting position to further his point.

Aware that there was no other way around it, Kimimaro remained as stoic as before and gripped the bone sword in his hand. "If that's what you wish for, so be it. I'll make your death as quick and painless as possible." Slowly the curse seal on the bone user's chest started to spread and to himself, Lee wondered what he was truly up against.

**0000000000**

"This is pathetic. I had hope for a better fight than this." At the feet of Jirobo was a battered Choji Akimichi. Ever since the Oto shinobi had went into his second stage the fight had become a one sided one. There fight had moved away from the crumbled wall area and was now about a few miles away. "I guess without your friends to help you, you're not much of a shinobi. I don't know who's more pitiful. That you tried to fight me or your friends who thought that you would actually be able to defeat me."

Choji wanted to argue but his body was so racked with pain that he was unable to say anything. The cause wasn't just from the beating that he received but from the second pill that he took. Like the first one it gave him a burst of chakra only stronger although it would only give him a brief advantage in the fight before he was overwhelmed again.

"_I have no choice. I got to use the red pill."_ Reaching into his pocket Choji gripped the case that the one remaining pill was in. _"But if I were to use it I'll surely die. Am I'm willing to go through in doing such a thing?"_ As he tried to decide, he saw that Jirobo had a large boulder pressed over his head.

"Time to put an end to this. I've got more important things to do than waste it here with you." The rotund Oto shinobi was about to drop the boulder, crushing his opponent when something all of a sudden strike him in the neck. Following the strike, all of the strength in Jirobo's body unexpectedly disappeared and along with it his ability to hold the boulder.

Unable to keep the boulder above him, it came crashing down on him but unfortunately it wasn't enough to stop him. Recognizing the opportunity in front of him, Choji pulled out the case and popped the red pill into his mouth. An increase of incredible chakra once again went through his body but there was a difference from before. The Akimichi's appearance changed as he was slimmer as his body fat was converted into chakra and sprouting out of his back was a pair of butterfly shaped wings of pure chakra.

Walking over to where Jirobo still laid on the ground Choji raised his fist up and surrounded it in some of his newly acquired chakra. "This is it for you. I don't care what you say about me but I'll never forgive you for you insulting my friends. Goodbye." Driving his empowered fist down, he slammed it into Jirobo's chest with enough force that the ground below them collapsed. What happen because of the recent attack was quickly revealed as the opposing shinobi was no longer in his second state and had reverted back to his original appearance. After a few tense moments there wasn't any sign of Jirobo being alive.

"Thanks for the help, whoever you are." Slowly turning around Choji saw that the person who intervened coming over. When he saw who it was he couldn't be surprised. "It was you? How did you get here?"

Coming completely out in the open it was revealed that came to his rescue was Kin Tsuchi, former shinobi from Oto. "Yeah, it was me. As for why I'm here. My holding cell happen to be left open and decided to let myself out early." explained Kin in an offhanded way. "Just be thankfully that I happen come across you when I did."

"I am thankfully. Now I need to get going to help my friends." Choji staggered a few feet away but started to collapse. Before he fell he caught by Kin. This wasn't registered by the Akimichi boy as he was unconscious and from the looks of it not in that good of condition.

"That's enough for you for now." voiced Kin though it was doubtful that her words were even heard. _"To be able to defeat one of the Oto Four is quite an accomplishment. I won't say such a thing out loud though. For now though I should get this boy back to Konoha to get treated."_ Placing Choji's arm over her shoulders she started to head back. _"Who would've thought? It almost as though I'm starting to sound like one of these village's shinobis."_

**00000000**

"_He has me."_ acknowledged Neji to himself. For who knows how long, he done everything that he could to avoid all the attacks that were set his way. Unfortunately for the Hyuga, the drawing out of his chakra was tiring him quickly and each attempt was becoming more difficult to avoid. _"No matter what I try this adversary is keeping me on the defensive. Perhaps it's my fate to have my life end like this."_

The referring to the word fate caused Neji shook his head to make it go away. Remembering all the times that he heard from others that he shouldn't let so called fate determine how he should live his life. Only after losing his match to Naruto in the Chunin Exam did their words start to actually get through. _"Fate isn't something that's predetermine. It's something that we make for ourselves. Now is such a time."_

Closing his eyes, Neji let his vision be solely from his Byakugan. _"I'll likely have only one chance at this so I can't blow it."_ Focusing on nothing but on his surroundings he waited for his opponent to attack. The wait wouldn't be long as Neji detected another arrow only much faster. Reacting as quickly as possible he moved to the side but couldn't avoid it complete as it rip a good amount out of his side.

Ignoring the pain as much as possible, the Hyuga grabbed the spider thread that was attached to the arrow and had his chakra flow into it. The chakra traveled the thread and went toward Kidomaru who still was attached to the thread. It resulted in the chakra messing with the Oto shinobi's body and made him incapable of moving. Before a chance at recovery could happen, Neji was within range of him. Using the gentle fist even further damage was done to Kidomaru.

That proved to be too much as the six armed shinobi crumbled to the ground and had slipped back to his original form. _"I can't believe it. Who would've thought that I would be beaten by a mere genin? I didn't think that anyone but Kimimaro would beat me down this hard. Apparently it's game over."_ No more was thought from Kidomaru as his injuries became too much for him and his life faded away.

Being sure that his opponent was getting back up, Neji started to leave. He didn't get far as he lend against a tree while clutching his injured side as blood flowed freely from the wound. _"Looks like I don't have much time left. At least I was able to pick what my fate was going to be."_ Sliding down the tree, Neji closed his eyes and didn't move but seem content.

**00000000**

"Get out of my body!" Positioning his kunai, Kiba was about to stab himself with it but stopped as he got what he wanted as Sakon got out of his body. "Gotcha, you body jumping son of a bitch." There wasn't really anything to be pleased about as he had to stab himself earlier to prove the seriousness in his threat.

Being tricked didn't sit well with Sakon as he was close in using bloodline ability to destroy his opponent from the inside but that unexpected move stopped that from happening. _"Conniving little prick. He's going to make him pay for tricking me like that."_

Not far off, Ukon was in his own fight but it wasn't against Kiba's partner, Akamaru. The dog had been taken out earlier from a joint attack from the brothers from Oto. Before any finishing blow could be given, somebody showed up and it was Kankuro from Suna. He showing up was a surprise and the only reason he gave for being there was that he was returning the favor, whatever that meant.

"You should've stayed out of things that don't concern you." Ukon disclaimed as he started to get the upper hand on the puppet user. "Now you're going to share the same fate as your friend." With his transformed arm he raked it across Kankuro's face. "That's just a sample of what you have in store from me and my brother."

Oddly, there wasn't any kind of reaction from the Suna shinobi. All he was doing was his hands covering his face. "If that's a sample of what you're capable of doing then I have to say that…" Removing his hands from his face revealed that the person who had been hit wasn't Kankuro but one of his puppets. "…this won't take much longer." Coming out from the puppet's sides were cable with blades attached wrapped around Ukon. Tighten the hold the blades dug into him and when they uncoiled they did even more damage to the Oto shinobi.

Forgetting completely about Kiba, Sakon rushed over to his wounded brother who was still alive if barely. "Where are you, you bastard?" There wasn't any reply. "Join with me brother so you can heal up." Not arguing, Ukon rejoined with his brother but ask for save some of the retribution for him. After merging the older brother reverted back to his original form. "Show yourself, you bastard! What are you, afraid?"

"Of you?" Stepping into the opening was Kankuro. "Not likely." This infuriated the already angry Sakon as he made a dash toward the cause of it. For some reason, this made Kankuro smile. "What was that old saying? Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. Sadly, you won't have a third time." What was meant by that was explained as the puppet user's chest opened up and there was nothing inside of him.

Being unable to stop himself, Ukon and in a way Sakon feel into the opening. "What the hell?" Things became a bit clearer as it was revealed that Kankuro was nothing more than another puppet. Closing the opening in his chest the arms and legs of the puppets detached from the body and the blades attached to the limbs stabbed into the body and into the Oto brothers. From the blood seeping out of the body and no commotion coming from either Ukon or Sakon it was safe to assume that both were dead.

"What do you know? It was a two for one special." Like before, Kankuro came out and this appeared to be the real one. "Lucky for you I happen to find you when I did. Can I get a thank you here?"

No reply came from Kiba, who despite his own injuries went to check on Akamaru. To his relief his animal partner was alive but injured. _"Sorry that this happen boy. We at least made it."_

**00000000**

"Come one you idiot. Don't tell me that you're having trouble dealing with this one person." Temari's somewhat taunting remarks only got a grunt from Shikamaru as he stood behind her.

"This is what I need. One more troublesome woman to deal with." Although he tried to sound annoyed, the shadow user was glad for the help. He was going to inform her about what the opposition was capable of but was interrupted by his new partner.

"Don't bother. This won't take long." Biting her finger Temari swiped the blood across the fan. "Summoning Jutsu: Whirlwind Dance." Swiping her fan a gust of wind came along with a white, one eyed weasel that was carrying a sickle. Faster than the human eye could see the weasel disappeared and created a powerful. While the wind was short-lived the damage caused by it as the forest in front of them had been completely cut down and among the fallen trees was a dead Tayuya who was crushed under the trees.

"Well, how was that? No problem at all." Turning around, Temari gave the boy a smile like she didn't have a care in the world.

"_What a scary lady. She's even scarier than my mother."_ Shikamaru wisely kept that line of thinking to himself. _"Oh well, looks like I'll to give thanks to her this time around."_

**00000000**

"_These two are incredible. Neither one is holding back but can't get an advantage over the other."_ In front of Lee was a fight between Kimimaro and Gaara who had came to help. The fight between was intense and he would like to be a part of but couldn't as his body hadn't fully recover from the surgery that he had.

Things actually progressed to the point that Kimimaro went through another transformation. His skin was now a darkened brownish-maroon skin color with bones protruding from his back and down his spin. Most noticeable change from the transformation was that the Oto shinobi now had a tail. Even with the peculiar change, there wasn't any change to the expression on Gaara's face.

As things went it appeared as though the red headed shinobi had won as he surrounded Kimimaro entirely in sand and then used Sand Burial to crush him. That wouldn't be the case as he burst out with little damage. Things got stranger as the bone user actually pulled out his spine and used it as a whip. Using his newly required weapon was helping as it was close in getting through Gaara's sand defense.

"So, you're another monster." commented Gaara. Lee wondered what that meant but now wasn't the time to ask. "Is it due to being associated with the likes of Orochimaru?"

"Don't say such scrutiny against my lord." warned Kimimaro with an edge to his voice. "For what he's done for me I would do anything for Lord Orchimaru." All of a sudden, he put a hand over his mouth as he coughed and when he removed it there were traces of blood on it and the corners of his mouth. _"Time's almost up."_ "For your disrespect I shall kill you first, Gaara."

Kimimaro was going to back up those words when Lee suddenly appeared at his side. "Remember he's not your only opponent to deal with." He tried to hit a kick to the head but was blocked. Lee was about to be hit by the Oto shinobi's tail but the blow was soften by the sand but it did knock him back a bit. _"What strength. It's unlike anything I felt before."_

That attempt did prove useful as it allowed Gaara to use more of the sand to grab a hold of Kimimaro and start to pull him into the ground. "There's no point of you to struggle. You'll be so far underground that the pressure will make impossible for you to even move a finger." Ignoring those words, Kimimaro tried to get free but was still pulled completely underground.

"Is that it? Is it done?" Looking around Lee saw that everything had seemingly calming down. Silently he hoped that it was really over and unknowingly, Gaara was thinking the same thing.

They got there answer when suddenly Kimimaro emerged from the ground behind Gaara with one of his arms covered in bone in the shape of a spear. "This is for you Lord Orochimaru!" He was poised to strike but nothing came. On closer examination there wasn't any sign of life in Kimimaro and from the blood coming out of his mouth it was possible that the cause was due to fight.

"He's dead." Gaara confirmed. "His body finally gave out on him. Luckily it did as we would've been killed."

"Maybe but its like my sensei said, 'Luck is a part of real strength.'" Lee reasoned. Despite their minor dispute the two were just thankful that the two had managed to survivor against such an extraordinary opponent.

**00000000**

"At last I caught up to you." After running for nearly the whole time, Naruto had finally reach the person he and his team were after. At a place known as the Valley of the End were two giant figures carved into the opposing sides of the waterfall. On one was Naruto Uzumaki and on the other was Sasuke Uchiha. "Did you actually think that you would get away without incident, did you?"

Not looking back, Sasuke continued to look toward where he was going. "Turn around, Naruto. I don't have time for you." He continued to go but before he could get far he was stopped by the blond appearing before him. "Get out of my way. I have more pressing things to deal with."

"Like you betraying Konoha for Orochimaru? Are you that stupid? He'll just use you until he's able to take your body as your own. Is that what you're willing to do to get revenge?"

"Yes." answered without hesitation. "Does not matter if it's by hands or someone using them, my brother will be killed and my family will be avenged." He moved around the obstacle in front of him and started walking off again.

"So the end justifies the means. As long as you get your so called retribution for what Itachi did it doesn't matter." Naruto mused over without turning around. "Then who's the more despicable one between you and your brother? I wonder how your parents would feel about what you're prepared to do."

In a flash, Sasuke grabbed Naruto by his shirt and slammed him to the ground. "What would you know about family? You had no parents for practically your whole life." The enraged Uchiha punctuated each word by punching his former teammate in the face. "You can't possible understand what I feel." Again he tried to hit with a punch but it was caught by Naruto.

"Maybe you're right. I probably don't understand." Maneuvering he made it so that it was Sasuke who was on the ground with him in position to strike. "But there are those who I care about as I would for a family member. I would do anything for them and for a time that included you." Whether he was aware of it or not, his grip tighten on Sasuke's arm that it was close of be broken.

"I would give anything to have at least the memories of being with my parents. So don't bother trying to rationalize what you're thinking of doing." Letting out a frustrated sigh he picked up the defecting shinobi. "Now, we're going back to Konoha and if you don't come willingly I'll break your arms and legs to keep you from leaving."

"Afraid that can't happen." Not far away from them was former Konoha now Oto shinobi, Kabuto Yakushi. "Lord Orochimaru has plans for Sasuke and would prefer to not have them be delayed. So if you would be so kind as to release him and let us go trouble." How the medical specialist was requesting made it was as though he was asking for something simple.

Becoming immediately cautious about Kabuto's appearance, Naruto put Sasuke behind him. "That's not going to happen. By the way, how's your stomach?" That comment was directed toward when Naruto had used his wind jutsu, Wind Edge successfully for the first time on him. What was said didn't sit well with the glasses wearing boy as a frown showed. "Here's your chance to redeem yourself Sasuke. It's time for you to choose."

For a while there wasn't any sign of what Sasuke may do until he went ahead and perform a Chidori and giving a slight nod to the blond. Understanding what that meant, Naruto focused back on Kabuto. Creating a Rasengan in his hand he ready to fight him along with Sasuke.

Suddenly, Naruto felt something burst out of his chest. Looking down he saw that it was lightning empowered hand. Didn't take long for him to figure out that Sasuke had literally stabbed him in the back as he used the Chidori to stab him in the back and out through his chest. "Sa-Sasuke, w-w-why?"

Freeing his arm, the Uchiha looked on emotionlessly as Naruto went face first to the ground. "I told you already. I'll do whatever is necessary to get my revenge. Even if means getting rid of the likes of you to achieve it." Having nothing more to say he walked over to join Kabuto.

Even though the lost of strength from the wound was already affecting him, Naruto was fueled by anger and that caused the chakra from Kyuubi to come out. On pure instinct, the red chakra, in the form of a claw, swiped at his former teammate. Seeing coming from the corner of his eye, Sasuke was able to avoid getting a fatal blow but couldn't avoid the chakra claw scratching him on the left shoulder.

Before any further damage could be done, Kabuto hurried over and put over his shoulder and got both him and the wounded Sasuke away. Unable to follow, Naruto could look on as the two leave, clearly going to join with Orochimaru. The blood lost and most likely having some type of internal injury was starting to cause the blond to lose consciousness and even with the help of his quick healing was doing little to help.

"_Damn you, Sasuke. I'll make you pay for the decision that you made."_ That was last thing that went through Naruto's head as unconsciousness finally overcame him.

"_**Hey, wake up!"**_ yelled Kyuubi. _**"No way you're going to die and taking me along for the ride. Wake up now Naruto!"**_ All of the shouts went on deaf ears as Naruto continued lay motionlessly in a pool of his own blood.

* * *

Bet you readers were surprised by what happened here. I always planned on having Sasuke desert Konoha but I didn't want to not go with the whole thing with him and Naruto fighting on another. Deciding to make him seemingly reconsider his decision to literally stab Naruto in the back would make the betrayal more impactful.

Next chapter will be the last one of the arc and at the same time set up for what's to come in the one to follow. I hope to have it out within the month. Until then, see ya.


	53. Goodbye

Here it is. The final chapter to the first arc of my series. Originally there wasn't suppose to be any seperation of this story and having it being one single story. That changed when I realized that the story would be extremely long if I stayed with the original idea. Enough of that, time to get to the actual chapter. Disclaimer, I don't own Naruto.

* * *

Chapter 53  
Goodbye

"What's their status?" inquired Tsunade. Only a few hours had passed since Konoha was 'attacked and Sasuke abandoning the village. The team that was sent to retrieve the Uchiha for the second time had returned but not all under their own power.

"Kiba Inuzuka sustained some internal injuries but should recover. Shikamaru Nara's injuries are only a broken finger and some lacerations, nothing serious." A grim look came over Shizune's face before continuing since what she had to say next wasn't good. "Choji Akimichi and Neji Hyuga on the other hand are not as fortunate. They suffered dangerous chakra depletion and serious injuries. Both are in critical condition and being worked on but there's no telling if they'll fully recover."

"_It could've been worse. None of them could be alive."_ That line of reasoning didn't help ease the Fifth Hokage's anger that she was feeling as the thought of punching a hole in a wall was still tempting. "What about the last one? How's he doing?"

"Remarkably well, all things considering. Luckily the Chidori attack narrowly avoided his heart or he would've surely died." Shizune reported. "However, he did sustain a punctured lung and massive blood loss when the medical team brought him. Wasn't for his fast healing he wouldn't have lasted an hour. I believe we have his 'partner' to thank for that." That was of course directed toward Kyuubi but was left unsaid incase someone inadvertently heard.

"At least the casualties weren't any worst than they are. We may have lost Sasuke Uchiha but at least the blood that was spilled was as minimal as possible. All we can do is to try and recover from what everything that has happened." It was easier said than done and both of them knew it.

With nothing more to report, Shizune left to go back and help treat the serious injury that Neji recovered. Following the example of her first apprentice, Tsunade went to work in finding a way to help Choji's condition before it was too late. They knew that the recovering process was going to be difficult but it'll happen, one step at a time.

**00000000**

"So, how is he?" In his hospital bed, Kiba looked toward his sister, Hana as she checked over the other patient that was in the room. He was hurting but it wasn't all from his injuries.

"Well, he won't be going on any walks anytime soon." Hana determined. Gently she placed the wounded Akamaru on the small bed that was beside his partner's own bed. "I'm a veterinarian but I can only do so much. The tendons in his legs were nearly completely destroyed. Miraculously he should recover given time but can't say that he'll be as fortunate the next time."

Relieved about his partner's being reasonably recovered, Kiba was able to let go some of the tension that he had been holding onto. As he lay on his hospital bed he turned his head to the side and stared at the sleeping Akamaru. _"I promise you that I'll do everything I can to prevent something like this happening again."_

**00000000**

"You know that's not helping." Sitting in one of the hospital's waiting rooms, Shikamaru was nervously twitting his fingers as he waited to hear how his teammates were doing. He wasn't alone as sitting across from him was Temari. "You were taught about possible scenarios while at the academy. This was going to happen sooner or later."

"Learning about it and actually experiencing it are two completely different things." replied Shikamaru with no hostility behind it. The whole experience was pretty hard to take in and impossible to not be affected. Having all of them, including Naruto, being badly hurt in the hopes of stopping their now former comrade was something that the young chunin had trouble dealing with. "Maybe if I thought it through more I may have come up with a better plan."

"Do you actually believe that?" questioned the Suna girl. "You were given all the information that was available to you. Each of your teammates knew the risk going in and they accepted it. So quit your bitching and just do better next time." Temari's words while harsh did the trick as Shikamaru mumbled something about troublesome women.

Before the conversation could go further, Shizune appeared to give them an update. "Good news. Both Choji and Neji are now in stable condition and should make full recoveries." No response was seen from the shadow user except his face leaning toward the ground. "Did you hear me, Shikamaru? Aren't you relieved?"

A nod from the Nara boy confirmed that he was indeed glad about the news. But what was really noticed was that all of the emotions that he tried to bottle up finally broke through. "I promise to do better next time." Unaware by him was that Temari was also happy about the news and how it helped Shikamaru.

**00000000**

Slowly eyes opened and what was seen was nothing more than blurry images. Soon things began to clear and revealed to be a white ceiling. Shifting their eyes side to side, Naruto saw that by the bed was a stand with a bag of blood that had a tube that was connected to his arm. _"Uh, I never liked hospitals."_

Pushing himself to a sitting position he grimaced as a searing pain went through his chest. Looking down he saw that his chest was heavily bandaged. Seeing this made Naruto remember the reason for his injury and caused an anger to build within him. _"Damn you, Sasuke."_

As soon as his anger came it went as he saw at the foot of the bed was Hinata. She must've been there a while since she had fallen asleep in her chair while her head was on the hospital bed. _"Did she really stay all this time with me?"_ The mere thought of that being the case made Naruto smile.

Being careful to not aggravate his injury further he reached over gentle shook the Hyuga girl. "Tiem to get up, Hinata." All he got was her mumbling something about wanting five more minutes which made Naruto laugh. "Come on, wake up, sleepyhead." This time it did the trick as Hinata finally started to wake up and when she saw the blond awake any remaining bits of sleep went completely away.

"Naruto!" Within a blink of an eye, she reached over and embraced the startled boy. "You're awake. I'm so grateful that you're all right." Whatever else she wanted to say was left unclear as she pressed her face against his chest.

Ignoring the pain from his injury, Naruto slowly wrapped his arms around the girl. "Sorry about making you worry, Hinata. You can't quit the water works." That helped lighten the mood as she laughed a bit. "Have you been here all the whole time?"

Pushing away but keeping a close distance, Hinata wiped away the remaining tears in her eyes. "For the most part I was. I cam here as soon as I heard what happen and it wasn't' until your condition improved was I finally able to come in to see you. The nurses wanted me to go home to get some rest but I wasn't going to leave until you woke up." As if suddenly recognizing what she had said, Hinata started to blush while avoiding eye contact.

Instead of coming up with some kind of teasing remark, Naruto placed a hand on the side of her face to have her look back at him as he smiled. "I appreciate your concern, Hinata. I really am. Glad to know that there's someone who cares that much about me."

Both of them slowly got lost in the other's eyes. They started to lean toward one another to have a kiss and there was nothing there to stop them. "Hello there. Heard what happen and came to see-oh." Sitting at the open window was Naruto's godfather, Jiraiya. "Am I interrupting something?"

"Do you have to ask?" chided the irritated blond. Whatever mood that was there was now gone. "Why don't you go see how Neji is doing, Hinata? He'll probably appreciate it." She was something reluctant in leaving but did as asked.

"So you and the Hyuga girl are together." commented Jiraiya. You didn't even have to look at him to know that he found the whole thing amusing. "It's about time. I was starting to wonder if you even liked girls."

"Is there a reason why you're here, old pervert?" The last thing that Naruto wanted to do was talk about relationships with a well known womanizer. "So you said that you found out what happen while you were gone?"

"Yeah and I have to say that you and your friends did a good job, all things considering." Though it wasn't much, getting that bit of praise from a sannin was something. "Listen, Naruto. You should give up getting Sasuke back." Before an argument could start, Jiraiya continued. "He left Konoha and joined Orochimaru at his own free will. Nothing will come from going after him."

Neither of them said anything for a while and it wasn't until Naruto spoke up that did it change. "Sorry but I disagree." Like with what happen to him earlier, the demon host continued. "I want to bring Sasuke back so he can get the punishment he deserves for leaving the village and joining the enemy. However, if he gives me no choice, I'll take care of him myself." By the look in the boy's eyes he was serious about his declaration. "Too bad I won't get the chance since Orochimaru will take Sasuke's body for his own."

"I wouldn't be so sure about that." Jiraiya's remark only confused his godson/student. Orochimaru couldn't wait any longer and had no choice but transfer his soul into another body. By doing so he won't be able to do it again for three years." Glancing over he could see that Naruto was starting to understand what was being said. "That means that Sasuke is safe. Well, as least for now."

**00000000**

"How glad I am that you have finally arrived, Sasuke." In one of his many secret bases of Orochimaru, the young Uchiha had arrived and was now standing before the pale skinned sannin who still had bandages covering most of his face. "I hope that your journey wasn't much of an inconvenience."

"That's none of your concern. Now let's begin my training." Luckily for Sasuke he was able to hide the discomfort in his left shoulder. Even though it had been over a day since that claw in the form of chakra scratched him there was still some pain. While it had been treated by Kabuto's medical jutsu it couldn't be completely healed, meaning there would be scarring.

"Remember your place." scolded Kabuto. "He may not look like it but he's Orochimaru." In retaliation, Sasuke gave him a deadly stare that contained such hostility. _"This intent is unreal."_

From where he was, Orochimaru couldn't help but be pleased at how things had developed. _"Excellent. He's the one."_

**00000000**

"You can't be serious." Shortly after being released from the hospital, Naruto was told to go to the Hokage's office. For the reason why, he wasn't told and when he did find out he was shocked. "What do you mean I have to leave Konoha?"

"Not forever." clarified Shizune, hardly flinching from the angry blond. "You'll be gone no more than three years. Also, you won't go alone as you'll be going with Jiraiya." That did little to ease Naruto's frustration as he was close to letting that feeling be put into words. "Trust us; it's for your own good."

"How's me leaving the village will be for my own good?" Naruto inquired. "Instead of taking a taking a trip I should be focus on finding bringing that bastard Sasuke back." Not even realizing it he placed a hand over the spot that the wound on his chest once was. "Both he and everyone involved should get what's coming to them." His anger about the subject was evident by the tone of his voice.

"That's the reason why you need to go on this journey." The Hokage's reply was enough to put a halt to whatever retort that could've been said. "By now Sasuke is with Orochimaru and as much as you hate to admit it, you're no match for him." Silence was all that Naruto gave for that estimation. "So for the next few years you'll focus only on the training that Jiraiya will be providing you. Something he should've been doing already."

When that explanation was given you could see that Naruto was starting to get interest in the idea but there was something about it that gave him a nagging feeling. "Have to say that even though the idea of spending that much time with that perverted man isn't something I look forward to, the chance of getting stronger is tempting. However, I have a feeling that there's more to this 'extended trip' than you're letting on. Care to tell me what it is?"

Hesitant looks were traded between Tsunade and Shizune as if they were silently trying to figure out how to explain things. Finally, it would be Tsunade who spoke up. "You're right. There's another reason why you should go. It's the Akatsuki." The mentioning of that group caused Naruto's anger that he had earlier to resurface and intensify as the history between them wasn't a pleasant one.

"From what Jiraiya could find out, the Akatsuki are for some reason putting a hold on gathering the tailed demons for the next three years but it doesn't mean that they won't be doing anything. By you constantly on the move it'll be difficult for them to keep trace of you. Remember, they want what's inside of you and you can possibly go against them as you are." Like what happen with the subject involving Orochimaru, Naruto said nothing as he that it was true.

"All right, I get what you're saying. When do I to leave?"

"A week. By that time all your injuries should be completely healed and give you time to get everything you need to in order." Seeing no problem with that, Naruto nodded in acceptance. "You should also know that due to all of the issues surrounding your team it has been decided that Team Kakashi be disbanded."

The decision wasn't a complete surprise. With Sasuke's desertion, Sakura becoming more focus in learning medical ninjutsu and along with the hostility that Naruto had with Kakashi it seemed to be a matter of time. "Now if you don't mind, I have another appointment that I need to take care of."

Having nothing else, the spiky haired blond headed for the door. As he was leaving, two ANBU members entered while leading someone in with them. Recognizing the person, Naruto was shocked but let it go since it had nothing to do with him.

**00000000**

"Welcome. Please take a seat." greeted the Hokage. The person that the offer was directed toward didn't accept right away but finally complied. "You can leave us." That was directed toward the ANBU who did as they were instructed. "I'm glad that you could show up. I was hoping that we could discuss some things, Kin Tsuchi."

"Like I had much of a choice." retorted Kin with slight irritation. "I was practically dragged here by two monkeys in masks. Is it really necessary to get this uptight about breaking out of my cell?"

"On the contrary, I asked you here to give thanks." The unexpected of that revelation caught Kin by surprise and it was clear by the expression on her face. "From what has been reported, you assisted in defeating one of the Oto Four when they attacked." What Tsunade was referring to when she helped Choji in defeating Jirobo. "In all the commotion you could've easily escape from the village without being noticed. Instead you saved a Konoha shinobi from a former ally of yours. Mind explaining why you did that?"

"Not much to say." shrugged Kin. "I broke out and quickly recognize what was going on. Thought it was a good opportunity to get some retribution when I came across the two fat boys fighting and decided to get involved. I would be taken in by your ANBU after the fight. That's the whole story. What are you going to do about it?"

There was no reply from the Hokage or her assistant and while she wouldn't admit, Kin became a bit concern about what could happen next. "On what's to become of you have been discussed on many occasions and a decision has been reached. It has been decided that from this forward you're a part of Konoha and one of its shinobi." To her credit, the dark haired girl was keeping a calm composure.

"Before you give your answer, there are some conditions. For the next two years you'll be on probation, to be sure that you're not trying to deceive us. You'll start out as a genin and remain one for the first year of your probation. Are those terms acceptable?"

Kin didn't give an answer right away as she considered the offer. "Sure, why not? It's better than the alternatives and this'll give me the chance of possibly running into some Oto bastards." Her response was a little unsettling but as put aside for the time being. "So, how am I being assigned? Who am I going to be teamed with?"

The revealing wouldn't be done by Tsunade as it was Shizune who explained. "Unfortunately, there are no openings in any of the teams. Therefore, it was decided that for the time being you'll be the apprentice to a jonin." A sudden knock at the office door was heard. "And I believe that must be the jonin in question."

When the door opened a purple haired woman, wearing a fishnet bodysuit, a skirt and a trench coat walked in while eating a stick of dango. When she spotted Kin she let out a sigh. "Is this the person that I'm going to be teaching? Doesn't look like much."

"Who the hell are you to talk? At least I don't' look like some slut." Right as those words were said, Kin felt a brief pain from her cheek. Putting a hand to her cheek she discovered that somehow it had gotten cut. The cuase for it was the scantly clad woman throwing the dango stick.

"You've got spirit. That's good, because you're going to need it." The tone that was used made the former Oto now Konoha shinobi a little uneasy. "The name's Anko Mitarshi. I'm your new sensei." By how the introductions went, Tsunade had to hope that this wasn't going to be a decision that she'll regret.

**00000000**

"So you're going to be leaving for three years?" Shortly after leaving the Hokage Tower, Naruto ran into Sakura. Thinking than it was better that she should know about it now than later, he told him what was going to happen involving him.

"At least for that long." muttered Naruto. "I'll probably be back sooner than that but who knows? Hopefully it'll be worth it so I can do what I plan to do." Remembering what one of those things was Naruto became a bit uneasy. "Sakura, you have to know that sooner or later I'll run into Sasuke. When it happens it can get ugly. What I have to know is what do you plan to do?"

She didn't answer right away as Sakura wasn't sure herself. "Honestly Naruto, I understand what needs to be done but…but I still have feelings for Sasuke. If I were to face him I don't know if I could fight him."

"You can and you will." Naruto assured. "When that time comes you'll know what to do." Those words helped put Sakura a bit at ease. "That's for another time though. I've got a week before I have to leave and I plan to not let it go to waste." Already ideas were going through Naruto's head on how he would spend the week.

**00000000**

A Week Later…

"Well, are you ready to go?" asked Jiraiya. He was leaning against the doorway of the room of his godson and for the next few years, his apprentice as he got everything in order.

Packing the last few items into his pack, Naruto threw it over his shoulder. I'm as ready as I'm going to be." Both of them would take their leave of the apartment and made their way to leave the village. "It's hard to believe that I won't be here for three years."

"That's probably a good thing. After what you've done this week I'm surprised that there hasn't been a mob after you." Jiraiya's words only made Naruto laugh. True to his word, Naruto used the week to leave a reminder. They were simply pranks but what was done and were done to was the difference.

Most memorable ones were exchanging granny Tsunade's secret sake stash with identical bottles filled with hot sauce, pretending to burn all of Jiraiya's copies for his next book and replacing the shampoo that was used to wash the Inuzuka dogs with dye that would temporarily turn their fur orange. Thankfully no one took the pranks seriously and got over them once the initial anger had passed.

Soon they arrived at the gates that lead to the exit from Konoha. They weren't the only ones there as some of Naruto's friends were there to give some parting words. Seeing no harm in it, he was given the chance to do so. "I'm somewhat surprised that you guys are here. I would've thought it was too troublesome."

"Yeah, it's a real drag." declared Shikamaru with a shrug. "Thought it was better that you saw some familiar faces as you were leaving." In a way that was the shadow user's way of saying goodbye. "Remember why you're going on this training trip." Understanding the hidden meaning to what had been said, Naruto nodded his head.

"Quit being so serious." Choji spoke up. "He might be leaving to do training it doesn't mean he can't have fun as well. I can only imagine all the type of foods you'll be able to try." That got a laugh from the three of them.

The laughing from Naruto came to an end when he saw that a bit a away from the group was Hinata. Making his way over he stood in front of her. Neither of them said anything right away as a moment of nervousness came over them. "I guess this is where we part ways as well."

"I…I guess so." Hinata managed to get out. "For the next few years you'll get the chance to see so many things and meet some interesting people." A light case of blush slowly came over her face. "Perhaps become interested in some girl."

Realizing what she was getting at, Naruto lightly chuckled. "I highly doubt that's going to happen." Placing his hand under Hinata's chin he raised her head to face him. "Why would I bother with them when the girl I'm interested in is standing before me?"

Reluctantly Naruto moved away from the Hyuga as he was ready to leave. Seeing this, Hinata could hardly contain herself. "Naruto, wait." Going over to him, she became extremely nervous about something. Finally gaining some resolve she leaned in and gave him a kiss on the lips.

This came as a surprise since getting together the main show of affection that was shown from the Hyuga girl was a kiss on the cheek. While caught off guard at the start, Naruto got over it and started to return the kiss. This went on for a bit longer until they separated with reluctance.

"Now how am I going to leave after that?" asked Naruto after recovering from what happen. For her part, Hinata was just as, if not more embarrassed by what just transpired but wasn't regretting it. "I guess I'll have to wait a while before I can do that again. You guys take care. I'll be back."

Getting his stuff, Naruto headed out with Jiraiya. Ignoring the snide remarks from his godfather/sensei, he thought about what was likely to come in the upcoming future. Although he wasn't sure, Naruto was prepared to face it head on.

* * *

Well, there it is. I hope that you weren't disappointed by how I ended things. As with how Part 1 ended in the actual series, this was somewhat to help what's to come in the following part/arc.

Hopefully no ones against the idea of the reason I gave for Naruto wanting to go after Sasuke. I just felt that with how I did the whole backstabbing thing in the previous chapter having him wanting to go after the Uchiha to pay for his crimes felt more suitable. Also remember that in my story the two of them weren't that much of a friends and were more like acquaintances. How that'll change things in the story? You'll just have to read to find out.

Expect to see the next arc to this series, being titled "Recommencement", later this month or early the following month. That'll have stuff that were in Part 2 of the actual series but they'll have more of my own personal twist to them. Also, there'll be more chapters that are completely original and will affect later events.

Anyway, until then, see ya readers.


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